Shooting Star
by Sagecycle
Summary: Mabel makes a deal with Bill when tragedy befalls her brother, Dipper. Everything that followed was just the aftermath.
1. Chapter 1

"Don't worry bro-bro, I'll be right back!" Mabel cheered, brushing off Dipper's worried glance in her direction as she ran off out into the woods in search for her brother's hat.

Coming back from their latest search for the supernatural, Mabel noticed that Dipper's beloved cap was no longer perched on his head. He reasoned that it must've fallen off when they were running in terror from the very thing they were after, Steve. The large tree monster had thought that they were there to chop him down and attempted to scare the kids off, with success.

Mabel smiled to herself when she heard the calming sound of birds tweeting amongst the trees. Her smile slowly faded from her face when she thought back on the events that had taken place over the summer of being in Gravity Falls. From mysteries begging to be solved to large triangular demons attempting to destroy the universe. No matter how frightening the situation was, Mabel got through them, with the help from her family. In the short time in the small town she had made so many friends and memories there. It was going to be hard to let them go come next week.

The smile on Mabel's face slowly fell as she realized how little a time she had left to spend with her friends and family. Dipper had decided to stay in Gravity Falls with Great Uncle Ford to be his apprentice, much to Mabel's horror. Who was she going to lament to now when she had problems in school? Who was she going to pick on every second of the day now that Dipper wasn't going to be there? Without her brother, she would be lost. Sure she would have her parents, but they weren't her favorite twin in the whole world.

Mabel was so lost in her thoughts she didn't notice the hole in the ground, nor did she see the hundreds of pairs of beady eyes staring at her from within the trees. She barely managed to let out a scream as she stepped right into the large hole in the ground. Falling quite a few feet, she landed on the ground with a hard thump. Mabel lay there for a minute, trying to gather the strength to move, but her body wasn't cooperating. Mabel couldn't feel her left foot and there was a large pain growing in the back of her skull. She managed to pull herself up off the ground, favoring her right leg for support as she attempted to find her way up and out of where she had fallen down.

She managed to find a few vines that were growing inside the dark hole. Tying them together, she made herself a rope to hoist herself up with. The strain on her arms as she pulled herself up made her realize just how bad that fall had been. She cut her hands up pretty bad on the thorns the vines were covered in, but managed to escape the hole. Being above ground once more gave her the time to look herself over. She cringed when she took in the damage that had occurred. Her foot, which she still couldn't feel and was suddenly glad she couldn't, was bent at an odd angle, bone sticking out from her skin where her ankle was. It was bleeding profusely and was turning a sickening shade of purple.

The back of her head was throbbing as well. Bringing a hand up, she covered the spot with her hand and flinched when she touched something warm and sticky. Pulling her hand away, she noticed a lot of blood staining her otherwise pale skin. A sudden wave of dizziness washed over her. She swayed in her spot, her vision going dark for a moment before she managed to shake the feeling off. She wasn't going to give up though. She had come out here in search for her brother's cherished hat and she wasn't going back without it. So against her better judgement, she pushed on further, ignoring the way her vision had once again blurred and the throbbing in the back of her head grew worse.

It had been a few hours since Mabel had left the shack and Dipper's constant pacing had gotten on Stan's nerves. The man was trying to run a business here and his mess of a great nephew was ruining his profits. He had offered the boy a break for a bit to clear his head, but that didn't seem to help. The longer it took for Mabel to come back, the more wound up the boy got. Even Ford seemed a bit worried for the lad, going as far as offering the kid a round of their favorite game _Dungeons, Dungeons, and More Dungeons_ , to which the kid turned down. Stan could understand why Dipper was worried, Mabel should've been back by now, either with the crappy hat or without it. It's not like Dipper couldn't just get another one from the shack, Stan wouldn't have minded.

Before Dipper could pace the shack once more, the front doors slammed open to reveal a very tired, very disheveled Mabel Pines. In her hands was the very had that Dipper had lost. All of the occupants of the shack turned to look at the bruised and battered girl that stood in the doorway.

"The savior has arrived!" Mabel shouted, holding the hat up in the air.

Not one person said a word as they watched the girl sway from one side to the other, her eyes sliding closed. Her body slumped over and she hit the floor face first. Dipper was the first to act, rushing forward to gather his fallen sister in his arms and lifting her up to bring her inside. Stan and Ford followed behind the boy into the back room, rushing off in different directions for things that they need. Dipper placed Mabel onto the couch in the livingroom, taking the seat next to her head to brush her bangs out of her eyes. Dipper felt tears threatening to fall as he looked his sister over to assess the damage that had been done.

Stan and Ford came back in the room, one with a medkit and the other with a phone in their hand. As Stan was talking to the police, Ford had come over to help Mabel. He wrapped her head in gauze and set her foot in place. Adding a splint in the meantime, he propped the injured appendage up on the arm of the couch. He placed a cooling pad overtop her head and foot to help with the swelling as well as her fever. Dipper hadn't moved from his spot on the couch, his hand now holding his sister's limp one. The hat placed back on his head a heavy reminder of what caused all of this.

Wendy and Soos were called over as well, each of them being just as worried as the other occupants in the room. The twins parents had been notified as well, Stan saying that she had fallen and hurt herself. Their parents were worried, so much so that they offered to come pick her up early, but Stan had managed to talk them out of it, saying that Mabel might not be coming home as soon as she was supposed to. They both understood, telling Stan to call as soon as he could to update them on Mabel's condition once she woke back up. All they could do now was wait for her to come to so they could ask what had happened.

All Mabel could see was black. She couldn't feel the unbearable pain as she did before, instead she felt light, lighter than air itself. As she floated in the inky blackness, she heard the sound of muffled chatter. It sounded so far, yet so close to her, like it was happening right in front of her; however she couldn't make out what was being said. As the muttering lessened, so did the darkness. Slowly, she was able to make out where she was, and that was nowhere. The place she was in held nothing in it. Just a blank white canvas. Mabel felt floor materialize beneath her feet.

Frowning to herself, she wandered around in hopes to find something, anything to help her distinguish where she was. Just as she was about to give up, a door materialized in front of her as well. She paused in front of it, her eyebrows drawn together in confusion as she walked around the door that seemingly led to nowhere. Shrugging her shoulders, she grabbed the doorknob and turned it, opening the door with a loud creak. Suddenly the white turned into gray and the air grew cold. A loud cackle echoed around her as the door flew wide open and a harsh wind knocked her backwards and off her feet. Skidding across the ground, she brought a hand up to block her eyes from the chilling wind that was whipping her hair around.

When it died down, she slowly pulled her hand away from her face, her mouth falling open in shock. There before her was the very demon they had banished back to wherever he came from. His bright yellow form glowed in the dull gray landscape. His top hat and bowtie ever present along with his cane. He hovered above the ground, his one eye opened wide to take in the nothingness that was Mabel's dreamscape.

"Sheesh Shooting Star, this place could use some decorating." Bill mocked, howling with laughter at the stunned look on her face.

"Bill? What are you doing here?" Mabel questioned, rising to stand up.

The dream demon said not a word as he circled the small girl, his eye shining with mirth. The look in his eye made Mabel shiver, he seemed to be circling her like she was pray waiting to be devoured, and perhaps she was. Not a word between the two was exchanged and before Mabel knew it she was waking up. The pain that she had felt earlier hit her full force when her eyes fluttered open. Bill immediately flew out of her mind as she screamed in pain, startling everyone in the room. She wreathed around on the couch, her eyes scrunched up as the pounding in her head and the burning on her foot became the only thing she felt. She didn't notice the long screams of pain she let out, nor did she notice the look shared between everyone in the room, but she did notice Ford step forward, a shot in his hand.

Mabel felt all the pain melt away as soon as the needle came in contact with her arm, in fact she felt everything slip away once more as she was put to sleep. Once again she was met with the gray landscape she had left only moments before. The same yellow triangle she left there was now lounging on a sofa that came from nowhere. Mabel walked forward, flopping down on the piece of furniture as well. Bill glanced over at the girl, watching as she settled down in the seat next to him. He was pleasantly surprised when a pig poofed in out of nowhere and settled itself in the girl's lap. It oinked at her before resting it's head against her stomach and fell asleep. Mabel lifted a hand to pat the pig on the head, ignoring the somewhat proud look she was receiving from the demon next to her.

Bill cleared his throat a bit, trying to form a conversation in his head with the very girl that had beaten him and foiled his plans only days ago. He had thought that his bubble that held her captive was enough to keep her out of the fight that he didn't even think to check up on her every now and then. She played a necessary part in his plans and if she was out and wandering around, he wouldn't have been able to complete what he had planned. Even though he was still defeated by the puny humans, he couldn't help the mild fascination with this one. She was about as crazy and reckless as he was, today proved that. She had always had that spark in her, the one that drove Bill to putting her in that bubble.

Sure she was important to his plan, but he didn't need to go through all the trouble in keeping her safe, that was just extra. What he needed her for was simple, he needed bait. The girl was perfect, she affected so many without even knowing it. If he took out the heart to everyone, his plan was basically set in stone. What he didn't plan for was that pesky Pine Tree to go digging around in the bubble and actually getting her out. That place was supposed to reveal to you your deepest desires, keeping you trapped there for all eternity; how that boy managed to repress them was beyond Bill, but he had done it.

"Ya know what Shooting Star? I have an idea." Bill spoke suddenly, pulling Mabel back from la la land.

The girl glanced over at the demon, seeing how his eye widened a bit. He flew off of the sofa, hovering no more than a foot in front of the brunette still reclining on the sofa. She managed to give him a halfhearted glare, one which Bill ignored in place of grabbing her wrist and hauling her to her feet. Mabel let out a low growl of annoyance, but let the monster do what he wished. He didn't seem as bad now as he usually did, so she didn't see the harm in humoring him a bit.

The demon saw the apprehension hidden deep in Mabel's eyes, but before he could comment on it, the look changed into one of stoicism. The light in her eyes seemed to die and her small smile that had once housed her face disappeared with it. If Bill had a mouth he would've been frowning right about now. This girl he had seen so lively not even a minute ago seemed to have disappeared right along with the light in her eyes and Bill had no clue why. He wasn't one for human emotions and he definitely didn't understand them, but he knew that this wasn't exactly normal; especially for someone with as large a heart as Mabel. Her emotions were worn on her sleeve for everyone to see not hidden behind a mask she put up.

"What kind of idea did you have in mind?" Mabel inquired, raising an eyebrow at the demon who hovered motionless, staring at her.

"That is for me to know, and for you to find out, now wait here." Bill chuckled, and with that he was gone. Mabel was once again alone in this dreary place.

' _Earlier Bill said something about decorating, can I really do that?'_ Mabel wondered, closing her eyes tight and imagining a large open plain.

Reopening her eyes, she found that what she imagined appeared. Squealing, she closed her eyes once more, picturing the clear night sky filled with many stars and thousands fireflies fluttering about. She opened her eyes and there around her was everything she imagined. A small smile graced her features as she gazed up into the night sky. She stared in wonder as a shooting star passed over head, leaving a small trail of white in its wake.

"Pretty isn't it?" A voice whispered, grabbing Mabel's attention from the night sky.

She looked over to see Bill, he had his eye glued to the sky as he wondered aloud. Mabel agreed, turning back to look up. The peace that fell upon them was light and cheerful. The sound of crickets filled up the calm silence. Mabel thought up a bench and turned to sit down on it, motioning the demon to do so as well. The duo sat together in silence, enjoying each other's company in this special moment.

"About your idea, what was it?" Mabel asked, turning her head to look over at the triangular being.

"I-er...Well I guess I could show you it." Bill turned around, his back turned to the girl.

Mabel attempted to look overtop him, but she was shooed away. She sat in silence as she waited for whatever Bill was doing. When he turned back around, Mabel saw something in his hand. The demon was looking away from her, holding his hand out while the other one scratched at his side. He seemed a bit bashful and Mabel found that cute. She reached out to take what he offered, a thank you on her lips.

"It's a shooting star, like the one you saw a moment ago. I made it." Bill muttered, turning a light shade of red, not out of anger however.

"Thank you, it's beautiful, but uh...what do I do with it?" She asked, holding the star in her hand.

"Oh, here let me." Bill took the star out of her hand and fastened it onto a chain.

He motioned for her to spin around, and she did so. She saw his hands come into view as he placed the star around her neck and clasped the necklace together. She reached up to hold the star in her hand, feeling its warmth pulse beneath her fingertips. Mabel turned around, smiling at the demon who was looking at the star in her hands. If he had a mouth, Mabel knew he'd be smiling.

Their little moment was cut short however, because Mabel felt that similar feeling of waking up. She gave Bill one last smile and a wave before she was gone and he was alone once more. Bill stayed in his spot a bit longer before he let out a sigh and disappeared from Mabel's dreamscape, back to his own, where he resided.

Mabel opened her eyes, taking in the bright white light right above her head. There was a doctor peering down at her as he looked her over. When Mabel began to wiggle around, it grabbed the attention of the doctor who was busy looking over her foot and head. He gasped, reeling back before he called for the nurses to come in. Within seconds the hospital room was filled with commotion. Nurses were rushing about checking her vitals and asking her questions about who she was. Mabel was a bit overwhelmed to say the least, but answered everything they asked. After a long few minutes the nurses and doctor seemed satisfied with their work and left her to her own devices.

Lying in a hospital bed was the most boring thing Mabel had to sit through, no one there to keep her company. The plain white walls doing nothing to entertain her at all. Just when she thought she would die of boredom the door to the room burst open and Dipper came running in. He was a mess of tears and snot, but Mabel welcomed the hug with vigor. Behind him she saw her two favorite Grunkles walk in, small smiles on their faces. She greeted them with a hug of their own. The three guests made themselves at home in the small room, seating themselves down in chairs scattered around the room.

"We're so glad you're awake Mabel, it's been weeks." Dipper gushed, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.

Mabel blinked up at him, a frown forming on her face. There was no way she was asleep for that long, it felt like 20 minutes tops. Dipper could see the question forming in her head, but he was distracted by something wrapped around her neck. It seemed to be a glowing rock of some sort, pulsing with light. Dipper reached out to touch it, but flinched back when Mabel practically pulled away from him. Dipper looked up to Mabel, but he grew scared at the look on her face. Her eyes were wide open, her mouth set in a thin line as she pulled further away from him.

"What is that Mabel? I've never seen anything like it." Dipper asked, attempting to calm the girl down.

"It's a necklace. A friend gave it to me." Mabel responded, still clutching the object to her chest.

"Who's the friend, Mabel?" Ford spoke up from his corner in the room. His eyes were locked on the star clutched in her hands.

Mabel swallowed a lump in her throat at the look in her Great Uncle Ford's eyes. It was as if he was staring through the object into her very soul to figure out how she had gotten it. Mabel closed her eyes, wishing she could be asleep once again so she could spend more time with her new found friend and not on trial waiting to be convicted for treason once Ford found out who gave it to her and who she had been with.

"Alright you two, let the poor girl rest, she just woke back up. Quit pestering her about a necklace, it's very pretty Sweetie." Grunkle Stan spoke up, nodding in Mabel's direction as he shooed the two out the room.

Before the door closed behind the two, Stan turned and gave Mabel a wink. She smiled at him as the door closed, glad to be alone for once. With that, she fell back to sleep, tired from the run-in with her family.


	2. Chapter 2

Mabel found herself amongst the stars once more. A large smile grew across her face when she took in the sites around her. This place was quickly becoming her favorite little secret.

"Speaking of secrets…" Bill laughed, coming to float next to the girl.

He noticed the smile that was plastered on her face managed to get bigger as she spun around to grab him into a hug. The dream demon was trapped in a rather squishy prison and he was helpless to escape, not that he wanted to. The little human that had fascinated him still managed to surprise him with her rather sudden displays of well, everything. He couldn't describe the feeling he felt around the human, he was certain he had never felt it before. The one that made him lose his bearings and made his imaginative heart beat at a million miles a second. The fluttering in his abdomen and the heat that filled his body when she laughed or smiled. Oh the way her eyes lit up when she was happy had him nearly to his knees. He was smitten with the girl, he knew it.

He'd be lying if he said he wasn't afraid of his new found emotions towards the girl. It terrified him. He, Bill Cipher, the most powerful dream demon this dimension along with every other dimension has ever seen, was enchanted by a mere human. His feelings got in the way of his plans, one second he'd be contemplating mass genocide of a race and the next he'd be wondering what Shooting Star was doing about now. It was totally out of character for someone like him, but he couldn't get rid of this feeling. The more he fought it the harder it became to focus on anything other than her. It was as if she was algae and he was still water, she was everywhere. He hadn't meant to run into her in her dreamscape, he wasn't even aware she could enter it on her own. He happened to be in the neighborhood and decided to stop in for a quick visit before he was on his way.

Of course he wouldn't want to change what had happened, in all honesty he was glad that had happened. Not her falling and getting herself hurt, no that wasn't what he was happy about (and he'd be visiting a certain gnome he knew was responsible for the whole ordeal). He was happy he got to speak with her, his little Shooting Star. For once in his eternal life, he was actually happy.

"So I was thinking, instead of this kind of scenery, why not mix it up a bit?" Mabel drawled, a wicked grin growing along her face.

Within seconds, the calming night sky became a bright fiery red, the ground they stood on melted into a large pool of lava. In the sky flew massive creatures, ones he was sure was purely thought up for this situation. Their large clawed paws swooped down to grasp at them as they stare up into the chaos reigning above. Meanwhile the same crazed grin never left the small girl's face. Where the beast was taking them, he had no idea, but the look on Mabel's face had him captivated. If he thought her smiles and giggly nature was adorable, this wild side to her had to be the most thrilling thing he'd ever bear witness too.

There in the horizon was a large rather familiar shaped castle. It reminded Bill exactly of his Fearamid. The beast carrying them flew through the large hole in the side of the building, landing on the ground softly to place the two down. Mabel patted the beast on his snout before he took off again, out the hole he came in. Bill took in the sites of the new pyramid. Instead of the large throne of solidified bodies, stood two large cats which sat side by side, their backs making up the seat for one to sit on. Mabel waved her hand, the cats bending down to accommodate her height. Once perched on top of the cats, Mabel waved her hand once more, another thrown appearing within the blink of an eye. This one was made out of statues of nothing in particular.

Bill glanced up at Mabel, watching how she nodded to him before staring straight ahead, waiting for him to take his seat. Bill floated up to the top of his chair, settling down on the surprisingly warm stone. The floor beneath the chairs disappeared to reveal the large pool of lava beneath them. Now above it, Bill could see there was monsters swimming amongst the fiery depths as well. Long serpents slithering through the sea, their slim bodies easily passing through the thick liquid. Glancing back at Mabel, he noticed a small glint in her eye, one that wasn't there before as she watched the serpents swim about. Mabel got off her chair, standing in air as she walked about the pyramid. Her eyes never leaving the blazing waters below, she summoned one of her winged creatures.

Bill could only watch as she climbed atop the beast's head, grasping reigns that weren't there before. With a flick of her wrist, the monster took off, speeding away from the throne room. Bill made an effort to stand, but a hiss from the cats had him stilling. He only watched as a bright flash of light flooded the endless landscape. He heard the cackle before he saw what had happened. Mabel stood above her creatures, a large grin on her face as she wreaked havoc on her creation. Bill could hardly believe what he was seeing, the same girl that beat herself up for a month straight over a pig was massacring every living being in sight. Her large form swung her hands around, grasping at monsters in the air and sea alike, crushing them with the force of her grip.

The screams and cries of foreign beings filled the air, the smell of blood fresh as he watched Mabel go nuts. Her cackles ringing out clearly, Bill simply sat in his seat, watching as Mabel slowly killed off every creature except for one, her winged beast she rode. Mabel came back, her normal size once more, covered head to toe in blood as she once again sat on her cats.

"How'd you like this change? I thought you'd enjoy a bit of chaos before I woke back up, surprised you didn't join in though." Mabel chided, wagging her finger in his direction.

Bill was awestruck, he had never seen such a change of character from one being. Going from one of crazed rampage to joking and laughing within a minute. This girl was going to be the one to make him sane. Bill simply laughed, a deep hearty howl that left Mabel's bones rattling, even as she awoke from her strange dreamscape. The sudden change of scenery had her blinking in surprise as she sat up, groaning as her head pounded furiously. She was back in that plain boring hospital room, with her Great Uncle Ford staring at her. He seemed lost in thought as he gazed at her necklace that was still placed around her neck. The star pulsed with warmth against her chest, reminding her of the bouts of insanity she caused in her dream. She had no idea what drove her to commit such a foul act of aggression, maybe Bill was rubbing off on her.

"Mabel, how are you feeling?" Ford spoke up, shaking out of his stupor as he noticed his great niece sit up.

"I'm feeling better than I did before, that nap really left me feeling refreshed." _Perhaps I shouldn't have done that to those poor creatures, but it was a bit fun to watch Bill react to it._

"That's good. The doctor said you could go home come early evening, Stan's back at home whipping up something for your return home." Ford grinned, motioning for Mabel to stand up.

The I.V. that was placed in her arm was removed and bandaged over, hiding the small hole that was beneath. For some reason, that bothered the young girl. Mabel followed Ford out of the hospital room, picking at the bandage covering her arm. As she passed, a few nurses gave her really strange stares, ones that dug under her skin and chilled her blood. Passing by a few mirrors had Mabel reeling. Her skin was stark pale, save for the dark circles underneath her eyes. The bandage wrapped around her head hid her hair from view and a cast that was placed over her foot was soaked with blood. The once white material stained a dark pink, something that was leaving footprints behind her. She couldn't feel the pain that she was sure was supposed to be there. The one she felt when she awoke the last time. In fact she couldn't feel her foot at all. Glancing up from her leg, she didn't see Ford walking ahead anymore.

Frowning, she looked around, taking notice of the stares she was receiving from the nurses were even more chilling than before. They made no move to reach for her, but their eyes were dead, lifeless as they continued on with their work without looking away from her. It seemed as if they were puppets, stuck in a repetitive routine. Their bodies carrying them where they need to go, yet they weren't really there. Mabel couldn't help the shiver that wracked her body as she turned around to continue out the door of the hospital into the outdoors. Pushing past the glass doors she was cast into darkness surrounding her completely.

It was as if she was drowning, her lungs couldn't take in the necessary oxygen needed to perform her normal tasks. Her body went numb as she gasped for air she wasn't receiving. Her head began to pound as she felt her conscience fading. Before she could succumb to the darkness around her, she felt a hand grasp her ankle, yanking her backwards and back into the hospital. Air filled her lungs as she coughed, the black fading from her vision and the white once again took its spot. The nurses were no longer to be seen and the hand that grasped at her ankle was still gripping on tightly. The white walls of the hospital were a duller shade and the lights flickered overhead occasionally. It was like a scene straight out of a horror movie. Wrapping her arms around her body she trudged forward in hopes of finding her grunkle once again. The long corridor seemed to stretch on forever as Mabel kept trudging on, the air around her growing crisp and stale.

Mabel spared a glance behind her and nearly cried, she wasn't getting anywhere. The glass doors leading out into the darkness were still right behind her. She could still feel the tight grip from the hand holding her in place. Maybe that was the problem she was having. Bending down, she poked the hand, watching how its grip only tightened on her. Sighing, she stood back up crossing her arms in thought. She knew she wasn't awake anymore, there was no way that out those doors was nothing but darkness. The hand on her ankle began to pull her leg again, leading her down the hall in the direction of its choosing. Mabel followed obediently, watching as the white walls slowly faded from existence and taking their place was the same darkness that the walls kept out. Instead of choking on nothing, the air around her grew warm, heating up her cold limbs.

"This way, Mabel." A voice echoed throughout the darkness, the hand on her leg easing its grip and fading away entirely.

Mabel followed the voice, noticing how the air kept getting warmer the closer she got to the source of its call. She couldn't make out who it was calling her, but the soft tone it used made her feel safe. Just as she was about to reach whoever it was that was leading her, the voice stopped and everything went cold. From within the darkness, Mabel could see shadows shifting about, forming silhouettes of monsters. Mabel could barely make out a singular eye that was staring dead at her, not blinking. The stare left a feeling of dread imbed itself right in her gut. It was the same look Bill gave her the first time he saw her, one of a predator watching its prey.

A large hand stretched out from the darkness, wrapping itself around her body, squeezing her tightly. The hand made it harder for her to breath, nearly suffocating her. Mabel made an attempt to escape the clutches of whatever held her captive, to no avail. The hand had a firm grip on her body, there was no getting out of its hold. A bone chilling cackle broke her out of her stupor. It reminded her so much of Bill's. What was happening? It couldn't have been him, he was just giving her a necklace and talking to her like they were best friends.

"Oh you young, naive, girl. Thinking that demon was your friend? He doesn't care for you, it's all a ruse to let him in. He wants to use you." A sultry voice spoke, making Mabel's head spin.

"W-what are you talking about? Bill gave me this necklace, he's been so kind and caring. What could he possibly gain from using me?" Mabel retorted, her voice weak and shaky.

That same cackle erupted from nowhere, ringing in Mabel's ears and driving her mad. The being's hold on her loosened enough for Mabel to gulp down much needed air she wasn't getting. She felt herself being pulled up in the air, perhaps right in front of what was holding her. Mabel could feel the breath of the being fan across her face. A small chuckle filtered through the air as another monster joined this one. It's voice sounding more hoarse and rough than the first.

"What do we have here? A small girl, she looks so scared." The second cooed, it's breath running down Mabel's neck leaving chills down her spine.

"Indeed she does, we should give her a reason to be scared." The first one hissed, her grip on Mabel tightening.

The poor girl was being crushed, she could feel her bones creaking in response to the tight hold on her, as if ready to snap. Just as Mabel thought she would pass out from the death grip on her, it was gone entirely, letting her fall to the hard ground below. Hitting the ground with a hard thud, Mabel felt her arm snap from landing on it, causing a scream to burst from her mouth. The two monsters cackled, taking some sick pleasure in the pain they were causing her. Her anger flared up momentarily, they were mocking her. She attempted to stand up on her legs, but was shoved back down by one of the two others. Mabel could feel a hand grab at her hair, hoisting her up into the air. The strain on her scalp was painful, but not unbearingly so. Mabel could feel their breath on her skin again, she was right by one of their mouths.

"A bite wouldn't hurt, would it?" One of them inquired, biting down into Mabel's arm.

She felt the sharp teeth pierce her skin and sink deeply in. Crying out in pain, they tore their head away, dragging bits of her arm with them. The sickening crunch of them chewing on bone had Mabel gagging. Oddly enough, it was as if they tore her nerves along with them, instead of feeling pain she couldn't feel anything. It was as if her arm wasn't even there, and now that she thought about it, it probably wasn't. She heard the beast swallow, letting out a soft sigh as they threw Mabel to the ground. Landing on the hard surface once more, Mabel felt her body protest to the harsh treatment.

"That was good eats, maybe you should try some." The deeper voice spoke, laughing like a madman.

"Maybe I will." The other responded, and Mabel felt herself being lifted up once more, by her foot this time.

"Bottoms up." The other laughed, dropping Mabel into her mouth.

Just as the monster began to chew, tearing Mabel apart she woke up. Her whole body was caked in sweat and she was shaking. Tears pricked the corner of her eyes, and they began to fall. In her hospital room alone, she could cry about everything. The wounds she got for trying to be the hero, meeting that damned demon and actually thinking he was a friend, the horrifying dream she bore witness to. It was all too much. Mabel poured her heart out to no one, simply finding solace in the way her fears seemed to wash away along with her tears. She could still feel the star pulse on her chest, and instead of finding peace in that, it made her mad. Yanking off the necklace, she threw it at the wall, watching how the rock seemed to turn to dust as soon as it hit the hard surface.

That didn't make her feel better, in fact it only made it worse. That was the prettiest thing someone had ever given her, and in her blind fit of rage she destroyed it, like she does to everything else. Her brother's mentorship with Ford, his hunts for the supernatural, everything. She was so selfish, expecting so much from everyone else, yet not doing a thing in return. She wished she could have a perfect world, one where everyone did what they wanted and didn't hurt others in the process. She just wanted her brother back. Being Ford's apprentice meant they wouldn't get to hang out as often and Mabel didn't want that. She wanted to stay the Mystery Twins forever.

"Ya know, Shooting Star. I could strike you up a deal. Make your brother stay with you forever, in return you just gotta help me out." A voice spoke up, a small chuckle ending his sentence.

"I don't know, Bill. You'll probably just trick me and use me to start up Weirdmageddon again." Mabel cried, glaring up at the yellow triangle floating above her.

"I just want you to help me out, not start another apocalypse, I'm not yet ready for that again." Bill said, holding his hand out which erupted in blue flames. "What'll it be Shooting Star? Your brother's attention in exchange for helping me?"

"What am I helping you with?" Mabel asked, eying Bill as he shrugged.

"A little bit of this and that, nothing too major." He simply stated, his outstretched hand still open.

"...Fine, it's a deal." Mabel muttered, grabbing ahold of Bill's hand, shaking it.

Bill's one eye opened wide, a deep cackle echoing around them as he grabbed Mabel's wrist and hoisted her up onto her legs. Mabel panicked as Bill gave her a sideways stare, that same glint in his eye as before.

"Well then, care to help me?" He growled, snapping his fingers.

Within seconds, they were no longer in the hospital room, instead they were in a large bedroom. The color scheme was rather dull, made up entirely of gray. The only color in the room was herself and Bill. the only piece of furniture being a triangular shaped bed.

"Wow Bill, this place could use some more color." Mabel spoke aloud, wrenching her hand away from his. "Oh and, what the heck man?! Where did you take me?!"

"Calm down Shooting Star, you're fine. We are in my dreamscape. I told you I needed help, and this is helping." He shrugged nonchalantly.

"What did you want my help for?" Mabel whispered, suddenly afraid of the look in the triangle's eye.

"You're helping me by staying out of my way." He simply said, spinning around and floating out a door.

"You can't just keep me here Bill! What about my end of the deal?!" Mabel shouted, pounding on the door.

"Oh you'll be getting your brother's attention, he's gonna be thinking about you all the time now!" He said cryptically before his voice faded from existence entirely.

Mabel sunk down to the ground in defeat. Tears fell from her eyes as she curled up in a ball right by the door.

' _That demon is the worst. I can't believe he'd just leave me here! I mean what if I get hungry or sick? It's not like he'll be willing to help me.'_ Mabel sniffled, her cries subsiding into soft sniffles.

"I hate you, Bill Cipher!" Mabel cursed, rising to her feet to punch the door he left.

When her fist met with the wood on the door, pain exploded in her hand, but she was so upset she didn't notice. Rubbing a hand down the side of her face she slumped over to a corner in the bedroom, tucking her knees to her chest as she sat there, staring off into space.

It felt like days before Bill came back, Mabel was famished and her throat was so dry it made it impossible to speak, but she didn't need to. Bill could tell how mad she was at him by the look she gave him as he came inside the room, placing a tray of food and water on the edge of the bed. He said not a word to the girl in the corner as he came in, put the tray down, and left. Mabel glanced at the tray of food, her mouth salivating at the thought of eating; however, she didn't want to seem like she was caving. Scoffing, she turned around, facing the corner as she sat, rocking herself slowly.

Bill sighed as he watched Mabel deteriorate right before his eyes. He didn't mean to make her upset, and he certainly didn't want her starving herself just because she wasn't willing to accept anything from him. Bill knew he messed up, but he couldn't do a thing to fix it, she wouldn't hear him out anyway. He had tricked her, he didn't need her help with anything, he just wanted an excuse to have her closer to him. He used her anxieties against her to make a deal, a selfish one that was backfiring quickly. He didn't want to see her destroy herself over this, but he wasn't willing to give her up. This was the only way to keep her with him and he knew it. Maybe if he changed up the deal a bit, wreaked a bit of havoc to make her stay with him in exchange for something else, but what?

That's when it hit him, her brother. If he could stage an accident, let her try to help then swoop in and seal a deal, he'd have her in the palm of his hand. With the snap of his fingers, Mabel was back in the Mystery Shack, her wounds healed and no memory of anything that happened today, much like everyone else. Grunkle Stan was in the kitchen making some of his Stancakes, Great Uncle Ford was sitting at the table reading over something he deemed important, and Dipper was right there with him. Mabel came up from behind her brother, scaring the bejesus out of him.

"Hey bro-bro! Wanna go out and look for some kind of mysterious being? I was thinking we could go look for pixies or something." Mabel clapped Dipper on the shoulder, pushing him towards the door.

"But Mabel, I can't do that today. Grunkle Ford and I were watching these readings, they're off the charts!" Dipper fussed, pulling out of Mabel's hold and going to stand back by Ford.

Mabel pouted, but otherwise left the dweebs to themselves. She knew how important this was to her brother, his studies were always more important. Mabel slumped down into a seat by her Grunkle Stan, sighing as she did so.

"What's got you so down, Kiddo?" Stan asked, glancing at the depressed girl.

"It's Dipper! He never wants to do things with me anymore! It's all about Great Uncle Ford and their readings on a stinking chart!" Mabel whined, crossing her arms when Dipper turned to give her a look.

"Mabel, we'll hang out later after Grunkle Ford and I figure out what these readings are about." Dipper chided, giving his sister a dull stare before he and Ford went back to what they were doing.

"Actually Dipper, I think you should go and hang out with your sister. These readings aren't that important right now, I'll keep monitoring them and let you know if I need your help." Ford retorted, giving the younger twin a small smile before sending him on his way.

The set of twins grinned at one another and were off without so much of a goodbye. Stan couldn't help but shake his head.

"Those kids'll get themselves in so much trouble one day with their snooping." He chuckled, earning a grunt from Ford.

Mabel was running through the forest, her brother on her heels as they began their search. Pixies weren't very dangerous, but they were elusive. It would take awhile for either of them to even find clues as two where they would be. Mabel could tell there were gnomes watching from the trees, their beady eyes staring into both of them as they laughed with one another. Their happiness was short lived however, when a loud roar shook the trees around them.

Both siblings froze when they heard that, it sounded so close to them. Slowly they turned their heads to stare into what seemed to be a large tree monster.

"Dipper, it's Steve!" Mabel squeaked, her eyes opened wide as she tried to back away from the beast slowly.

"Mabel no! Don't move, it can't see you. Steve relies on his sense of smell to find trespassers." Dipper reasoned, raising a hand up to still his sister.

"Shouldn't that mean we should be in even more danger? He could probably smell us right now!"

"Not if he doesn't think anything's amiss, now calm down!" Dipper grabbed ahold of Mabel's hand, slowly leading her away from the tree monster.

Just as they were about to pass through the trees, a large gust of wind blew past the twins. Dipper froze up once more, a growl reaching their ears as Steve turned towards them. Mabel screamed as the tree monster charged the two, grabbing Dipper away from his twin. With Dipper in Steve's branches, Mabel began to panic. She didn't know how to beat this guy, there wasn't any weaknesses listed in the journals. Mabel heard her brother's cry of pain.

"Dipper! Hang on, I'll think of something!" Mabel shouted, hands bunched into fists by her sides as she struggled to think of a plan.

"No Mabel! You need to get out of here, Steve will only get more riled up with both of us here!" Dipper called back, his voice coming out in squeaks as Steve squeezed his ribs.

Said tree monster roared once more, reeling his branch back that held Dipper trapped and flung him forward, crashing into another tree. Mabel heard the sickening crunch of his ribs as he hit the tree. Tears sprung up, threatening to fall as she stared at the fallen form of her brother.

"Dipper!" Mabel wailed, rushing forward to crouch down by her fallen brother.

"M-Mabel, you n-need to get out o-of here." Dipper whispered, his eyes slowly sliding closed as his breathing slowed.

"Dipper no! S-stay with me bro-bro! I'll get us o-out of this!" Mabel whimpered, tears beginning to spill down her cheeks as her brother's hand went limp in hers.

Mabel clutched Dipper's fallen form to her body, her cries going unheard by all. Her shoulders shook as sobs racked her body, her breathing uneven and quick. Her brother's breathing had ceased a while ago, his body growing colder by the second. Mabel couldn't find it in her to stop crying, her other half was torn away from her forever. Letting loose a loud howl to the heavens she fell to the ground, her entire body shaking from her grief.

"Looks like you could use a bit of help, eh Shooting Star?" A chipper voice broke through Mabel's lamenting, causing her to let out a soft whine.

She glanced up to see that damned triangular demon floating above her with a cheerful look in his eye.

"I can get your brother back, free of charge! After all, you managed to beat me and all. That should be rewarded tenfold." Bill drawled, floating closer down to Mabel.

"N-no catch?" Mabel asked, rubbing a hand over her eyes to clear her vision from the blur of tears.

"No catch, just your brother back." Bill sung, holding his hand out for her. "Do we have a deal?"

"Yes! It's a deal!" Mabel nearly jumped out of her skin to shake Bill's hand.

"Good, now keep an open mind." Bill snapped his fingers, and with that he was gone.

Mabel looked down to see Dipper's eyes fly open as he sputtered, coughing. Mabel nearly cried from relief, crushing her brother in a hug.

"Oh God Dipper, you're alright! I was so worried!...thank you." Mabel cried, opening her eyes and giving the spot Bill had just been a grateful look.

"Woah calm down Mabel! I'm fine!" Dipper laughed, reaching up a hand to pat his sister on the head.

"Let's head back yeah? It's been a long day." Mabel said suddenly tired from the day's events.

"Yeah let's go back, maybe Grunkle Stan's made something to eat, I'm famished!" Dipper laughed, standing up to brush off the dirt on his shirt.

The two twins slowly made their way back to the shack, one of them distracted by the things that had just transpired.


	3. Chapter 3

Dipper pushed open the screen door that led into the shack, a few customers bustling about in the gift shop. Stan was leading a few people through the halls, showing them many of his hand made mysteries, cracking jokes with the small crowd. Mabel didn't say a word as she passed right by her brother who was now chatting it up with Wendy who was standing behind the counter, her head in her hand as she stared idly at the small boy. Dipper noticed the odd behavior Mabel was displaying, but chalked it up to her nerves as they came back from the hunt.

Mabel slumped up the stairs that led to her and Dipper's joined room, opening the door and flopping down onto her bed, groaning as her muscles tensed up from finally being off of them. Whatever left of her energy she had drained from her as she lay still on her bed, her eyes slowly drifting closed.

Mabel awoke to something tapping at the glass window to their bedroom. Sighing, she swung her legs off the edge of the bed, being mindful to stay quiet, it was late. As her foot came in contact with the ground, the tapping suddenly stopped. Mabel growled in annoyance, sitting back down in her bed, her feet still hanging off the side as she slumped over onto her side. Just as she was drifting off to sleep, that same tapping came back, louder this time. Jumping out of bed, she raced over to the window centered in between the two beds, not caring that she would wake her sleeping brother, and tore open the curtains. Nothing but the darkness from outdoors stared back at her, the light from the moon and stars the only thing brightening up the otherwise pitch black twilight looming ahead.

"Mabel? What are you doing up?" Dipper's voice broke through Mabel's wariness, startling her.

"Oh, uh, nothing bro-bro, just head on back to sleep." Mabel stuttered, glancing in his direction before she looked back out the window.

"Whatever you say, sis." Dipper quipped, turning over and drifting back off.

Mabel sighed in relief, wiping a hand down the side of her face in a poor attempt to calm herself. Her entire body shook as she attempted to fall back to sleep, her eyes never once closing as she stared out the window next to her bed. She could see shadows shifting in and out of view, changing shape to anything and everything. Mabel's imagination was running rampant and driving her up a wall. Curling up into a ball, Mabel sat atop of her covers, knees up to her chest as she sat, waiting for daybreak when the shadows would cease to exist.

Dipper woke up rather early, the sun just starting to peak over top the trees, casting a warm glow throughout the room. Yawning, he sat up, glancing over to Mabel's side of the room, expecting to see her sleeping peacefully, instead he was met with a very tired looking version of his sister, rocking slowly as she sat in a ball huddled towards the front of her bed. Her eyes were wide open, staring blankly out the window as she muttered to herself. Frowning, Dipper stood up and made his way to her bed, sitting down at the edge of it. Mabel felt the bed dip under her brother's weight, not bothering to look at him as he watched her, worry clear in his eyes. She offered him a small smile, one that didn't quite reach her eyes as she finally met his eyes. He offered her one in return, holding his hand out to her for her to take, which she did so gratefully. Leading his sister out of the room and down the stairs, he brought her into the small kitchen, offering a good morning to his Great Uncle Ford as he ate his breakfast quietly.

Mabel grew a bit hesitant when she sat down next to Ford, worried he would know what she did to get her brother back. He didn't seem to know anything and she relaxed a bit, her eyes never once leaving her great uncle's body for more than a minute at a time. Dipper noticed this and grew wary, why would his sister be cautious of Grunkle Ford? Stan came into the kitchen not soon after they all sat down at the table, eating their own breakfast in silence.

"How'd you kids sleep?" Grunkle Stan asked, glancing at his great niece as she slumped over her bowl of cereal before jolting back up and glancing around the room nervously. She watched as the shadows danced along the walls from the rising sun shining through the windows. The way they danced had her shaking in fear and she didn't know why. The room's atmosphere grew dark and cold as the shadows began to merge together forming the shape of a large being. Mabel's breathing grew labored as she sat in her seat, watching how the shape seemed to move along the walls, towards her. A lump formed in her throat, making it hard for her to breath.

Just as the shadow reached the wall next to her, ready to lunge at her, she woke up with a scream. One that had the whole house up within a second. Dipper was sitting up, his eyes wide as he looked around the room for any intruder. Her grunkles came in no later, Stan holding a bat as Ford held up a ray gun. They came over to Mabel, asking her what was the matter, to which they received a muffled sob in response as she wrapped her arms around herself. Dipper came over to her, placing an arm around her shoulder as he held her in a hug, letting her cry into his shoulder.

The morning came soon after, the sun pouring into the window, casting the room in a heavenly glow, slowly calming Mabel's fried nerves. Eating breakfast had her nearly back to normal, her cheery self replacing the wary and cautious version that everyone had seen that morning. That day passed within the blink of an eye, and night soon fell. Mabel was a bit hesitant to go back to sleep, afraid she would be met with another nightmare like the one the night before, but a little convincing from her brother had her begrudgingly agreeing she needed sleep. She now lay awake in bed, surrounded by the sounds of her brother snoring and the tapping of the window once more. Ignoring the sound she turned over, facing the wall as she tried to block out the ever increasing knocks.

The longer she ignored them the harder they grew. Worried that the taps would wake her brother, she turned back to face the window, nearly screaming when she saw a singular cat shaped eye staring dead at her, the yellow glow from it lighting up the room a bit. Standing up, she made her way to the window, opening it a tad to led the demon in. He flew in through the window, letting out a sigh as he plopped down on her bed.

"So nice of you to let me in finally, I was trying all night last night." He growled, sending her a harsh glare as he reclined in her covers.

"What are you doing here? I thought there were no strings attached!" Mabel hissed, giving Bill the stink eye as he floated over to her.

"I can't visit my favorite human every now and then?" Bill asked, blinking his eye at her innocently.

"Cut the crap Bill, why are you here?" Mabel pushed, crossing her arms over her chest as she eyed him.

"Well if you must know, I wanted to come and stop by, wreak a bit of havoc in your mind a bit before I left." He chucked, circling her as he poked her head.

"You said there were no strings attached! Why would you think I would let you do that?" Mabel groaned, ignoring the way Bill kept floating around her head and sat on her bed.

"I did say for you to keep an open mind didn't I?" Bill whispered cryptically, his eye lighting up in glee.

Mabel frowned, remembering the message he said as he faded away when she summoned him. Why would that allow him to mess with her, it was a phrase for pete's sake! Bill cackled at the stumped look on Mabel's face, floating down closer to her as he whispered into her ear.

"Keeping an open mind means I can come and go as I please, Shooting Star. Man I didn't think you were that dimwitted." Bill mocked, once again circling the brunette as she glared at him.

"How was I supposed to know that no strings attached meant you'd still be getting something out of this?" Mabel moaned, slumping down onto her bed as Bill placed himself on top her stomach.

"Why would I give you anything for free? You wrecked everything I was working towards!" He squawked, waving his arms around for emphasis.

"So I'm stuck with you? How long are you going to pester me?" Mabel whined, giving Bill a pitiful stare from where he sat on her stomach.

"Oh I don't know, forever sound good?" He spat, grabbing the front of her sweater in his small hand, yanking her towards him. "Listen to me Shooting Star, and you listen good, I don't like you or your stupid brother. I only helped you to help myself, don't you ever think I would just offer my assistance on a whim so you can be happy."

Bill let go of Mabel's sweater, tossing her back onto her bed as he flew off her, glaring down at her before he offered her a goodbye and he was gone. Mabel could still feel the tight grip he had on her sweater and the look in his eye, filled with malicious intent and a hint of crazed glee. Curling up into a ball, Mabel covered herself with a blanket in a crude attempt to shield herself from the evil that she brought upon herself. With tears in her eyes threatening to fall, she fell into a terror filled sleep.

When Mabel awoke, the sun was already in the sky, light pouring into the room. Dipper wasn't in his bed as she slumped forward, rubbing a hand over her tired eyes. She didn't get much sleep that night, the same as before. Plagued with nightmares that made no sense yet still frightened her kept her on her guard as she sat in bed waiting for day to come. She could tell her weird behavior was starting to rouse suspicion with her brother and grunkles, but she wasn't going to offer any information as to what was causing her sleepless nights and odd actions. A long week went by with Bill coming and going as he pleased, torturing Mabel as she tried to sleep. Her brother was worried but he didn't ask what was wrong, he could tell she had to work through it herself, but he seemed to be reaching his breaking point as well.

As night fell and everyone went to sleep, Mabel stayed awake, curled into a ball with her knees to her chest as she is every night, waiting for the familiar taping at the window. When it eventually came, she got up without hesitation, opening the window to let him in. His yellow eye lighting up the room as he turned to face the girl he couldn't help the hysterical cackle that built up from within him. She looked like shit, her skin a pale sickly color, dark circles underneath her eyes and her thin form enveloped in a large sweater that used to fit perfectly. The girl he knew from a few weeks ago was no longer and he could tell just how tired and spent she was. Bill knew that she would break sooner or later and when she did, he would be there to break her some more. Mabel made no move to initiate conversation as she usually did, instead she just sat on her bed, her hollow eyes staring at him idly.

If he were honest, he was actually surprised at how easy it was to push her over the edge. The bubbly girl was replaced by this poor excuse of a being. Bill actually felt a bit bad for her, she did after all expect he didn't want anything in return for bringing her piece of shit brother back. No matter how bad he felt, he also rather enjoyed the pain he put her through. His emotions be damned, she wasn't worth the time and effort. Placing himself in front of the bundle that was Mabel he laughed. She peered at him from underneath the blanket she wrapped herself in, giving him a rather lazy stare.

"You look like shit, Shooting Star, letting little old me get to ya that easily huh?" He chuckled, giving her a lighthearted pat on the head.

She shook him off easily, opting to ignore him until he grew bored and left. Bill waited for her to comment or make some snide remark but all he received in response was a frown.

"Alright if you wanna play hard to get, I'll bite." He growled, grabbing her from around the waist and hoisting her into the air with him. "Jeez Shooting Star, you're lighter than you look."

He snapped his fingers and suddenly they were outside a few hundred feet in the air above the shack. Mabel felt her stomach lurch up into her throat as her eyes stung with tears. She glanced up at Bill, seeing how his eye had lit up with that same malicious intent as it did a week ago. She felt his grip on her waist falter for a moment and felt herself fall ever closer to the ground. A scream was torn from her throat as he let her go, dropping her from his hold and floating next to her as she fell to the ground below. Tears poured from her eyes as she frantically grabbed for Bill who flew out of her way every time she had a hold of him. Glancing back down, she realized just how close to the ground she was and braced herself for the pain of landing. A final scream tore itself from her lips as the ground grew closer and closer, and just as she was about to hit the ground she woke up with a shout. The sound of cackling fading from her mind as she struggled to breath.

Tears poured down her face as she cried loudly, her hands grasping the side of her face as she tried in vain to get the dream out of her mind. Dipper was awake too, facing away from his sister as she lost control of herself, his eyes scrunched up as he pretended not to hear her cries. He couldn't help her, there was no way for him to, she'd just wake up later in the same state. As Mabel sobbed and cried, a fleeting voice echoed throughout her mind, making her tears dry up as soon as she heard them.

"If anyone finds out about our little arrangement, I will personally kill everyone you love." Bill's voice hissed at her, his laughter fading out with his message.

The next few days dragged on for Mabel. She woke up each night from a nightmare from Bill and spent the day working in the shack and plastering on a grin for everyone, which Dipper still saw through to her dismay. Her family was worried for her, that she was aware of, but she wasn't going to be the one to have them all killed, not again.

Mabel's life fell into a routine after that, work around the shack to push out the feeling of giving up, going to bed after a long day only to wake up from nightmares, and plastering on a grin for everyone to see. Life grew hard for her, nearly each day was impossible to get through without spilling her guts to her brother or Ford or somebody who could possibly help. Dipper had offered her a million times that they could go hunting to get her mind off of things, but all she saw every time he said that was his still form growing cold and pale as he died right before her very eyes. She never responded to him, giving him a small smile before she returned to work. She knew that Dipper was about ready to give up too, from the way he spoke to her to the way his smile faded from his lips every time she turned him down, it was killing her.

Finally after weeks of turning him down, she said yes just to stop him from asking. School had started up long ago and summer was technically over, but her parents weren't coming for her, they had given up on her long ago, something she wishes Dipper would do. The morning came too quickly for her liking, but she got up along with Dipper to get ready to head out. They were going to look for Pixies, something she'd rather just skip on doing, but to please her younger brother, she'd strap a smile on her face and follow him out into the woods. The calm surroundings had her easing into the hunt, slowly growing to enjoy the break from constantly watching her back. Dipper was a few feet in front of her, looking for tracks that lead to where the Pixies could be, only to come up cold every time they thought they were onto something.

Dipper had just found another lead, and was wandering in the direction that it lead. Mabel could've sworn that she had been here at one point, but couldn't place her finger on it. That was until she heard a very familiar growl reach her ears as her and Dipper froze.

 _Not again._

Mabel turned around slowly, seeing that same tree monster step out from behind the shadows that blocked him from their view. Mabel could feel her legs shaking as flashes to what happened a little over a month ago filled her head. She could see Dipper out of the corner of her eye, watching how his eyes widened and a small grin spread across his face as he wrote something down in that wretched journal of his. Mabel managed to pull him out of the way when a tree branch swung at him, nearly smacking him into the ground. Mabel huffed as she pulled Dipper with her, taking off into a sprint in the direction back to the shack, the monster giving chase.

"I need you do run as fast as you can Dipper, can you do that for me?" Mabel shouted above the noises Steve was making behind them.

Receiving a nod from Dipper, he took off away from her, leaving Mabel alone with the monster. She reached into her back pocket, pulling out her grappling hook and firing it off into the distance, hearing it come in contact with a tree branch as Steve came barreling towards her. Grinning she tugged on the gun, reclining up the tree and out of Steve's reach as he tried to swing at her. Hoping to God that Dipper made it back to the shack, she fired the gun off again, aiming for a different tree in hopes to escape the monster. The gun missed her target flying way off course and getting tangled in the tree leaves. Mabel threw the gun in anger, turning her head to stare down at Steve as he jumped to reach for her.

Mabel screamed as he shook the tree she was standing in, sending her tumbling down it and landing not too far from the monster. Getting up, she took off in the direction she was hoping was the shack, hearing how Steve let loose a growl as he took off after her. With the little legs she was on she wasn't expecting to get far, but as she rounded the large clump of trees in front of her, she heard the sound of a low growl from next to her. She spared the area a quick glance, not seeing anything out of the normal before she focused on running again. The sound of Steve chasing her died down and instead she heard a lot of rustling and growling from something. She made an attempt to see what was happening, but the sound of a loud squeal had her running again. Whatever had won might go after her next and she wasn't about to let it get her.

Just as she passed the treeline heading back towards the shack, she saw Stan, Ford, and Dipper out front, waiting for her to get back. She came up next to them, panting as she tried to catch her breath. Before she could relax, Stan and Ford were pestering her with questions.

"Why have you been acting so strange lately? It's not like you to be so skittish around everything." Stan asked, talking over his brother who was trying to assess the situation. "Are you two alright? We heard a lot of noise and came outside to see Dipper hear in near tears as he paced around."

"Enough!" Mabel roared, shocking the three of them as she spun around to glare at her grunkles.

"I've had a rough month alright!? Dipper and I went out hunting for Pixies and ran into Steve and Dipper died and Bill came and offered me Dipper back in return for nothing and he hasn't left me alone since! I can't take it anymore, with you guys constantly bothering me and him not leaving me alone at night, it's driving me nuts!" Mabel shouted, flailing her arms around and stomping in circles as she spoke her mind.

"You did what?! How could you make a deal with Bill Mabel?!" Ford hissed, putting his hands on Mabel's shoulders to get her from pacing.

Mabel paled for a minute, her mouth slamming shut as she moaned quietly. Her apprehension that had melted away earlier came back full force as she looked away from her grunkles. A loud cackle had everyone freezing. Their surrounds grew gray and colorless as the laughter grew louder and louder. Mabel had broken free from her Grunkle's hold and was now standing in front of everyone, a grim expression on her face. From the tree line Mabel could see one singular eye appear, glowing a bright red as Bill flew out from the shadows. He grabbed Mabel's wrist, pulling her away from her family and into the air. He glared at her as he flew higher and higher into the air, his body glowing a deep red along with his eye.

"I thought I made it very clear Shooting Star, don't tell anyone and no one gets hurt." Bill roared, fire licking off his body and burning her skin as he tossed her into the air before grabbing her again.

He gave the three who were on the ground shouting to let Mabel go a look and that same look in his eye returned, the one Mabel was growing used to seeing. She knew what was coming, he was using their words against them as he released her with a grin, sending her tumbling down to the ground. Mabel said nothing as Bill watched her fall, the look in his eye faltering for a moment before he sped down to catch her right before she made it to the ground. He placed her down gently, floating eye level with her as he offered her his outstretched hand, glowing a bright blue as flames surrounded it.

"I have a proposition for you Shooting Star, I won't hurt your family in exchange for something I want." He spoke, his outstretched hand right in front of her face as she contemplated what he wanted.

"What do you want in return Bill?" Mabel inquired, ignoring the shouts of disapproval from behind her.

"Well you of course!" He giggled, the fire burning on his hand licking the side of her face as he drew closer to her.

"And you won't hurt any of my family? You promise you'll leave them alone?" Mabel growled, raising her hand to shake his once she heard his answer.

"I promise to leave your stinking family alone in exchange for you. Do we have a deal?" He practically squealed, everything was falling into place!

"What do you want from me?" Mabel asked, giving him a glare.

"You to be my slave, think of it as a life for multiple, works well in your favor don'tcha think?" He laughed, his hand waving in front of her face. "Time's a ticking, Shooting Star, we making this deal or what?"

"Fine Bill, you have a deal, you leave my family alone in exchange for me." She muttered, shaking Bill's hand.

Cackling, Bill grabbed Mabel's wrist once more, giving the three Pines a salute before he snapped his fingers and they were gone, the color returning to their surroundings as him and Mabel left.

"No Mabel!" Dipper shouted, rushing forward in a futile attempt to pry his sister out of Bill's grip but they were gone before he could make it.

"Grunkle Ford we need to get her back!" Dipper cried, turning to face his grunkles with a grim expression on his face.

"We'll figure out a way how, let's head back inside. Standing out here isn't going to get Mabel back." Ford spoke, turning around and heading inside, Stan following behind him silently.

Dipper spared one final glance in the direction of where Bill had been, glaring at it before he went inside to help his grunkle with a plan to get his sister back.


	4. Chapter 4

Mabel felt as if she would throw up. The feeling of teleporting making her sick as her and Bill flew through time and space had her gagging. If the demon noticed her current situation, he didn't comment on it as the world stopped spinning. They were now inside a rather large study bookshelves lining the walls and a desk pushed towards the side. Mabel gasped, pulling her wrist from Bill's hand with little hesitance. She gazed up at the shelves, running her hand along the spines of each book, noting how old they looked from the leather they were wrapped in. She pulled one from it's spot on the shelve, opening it up and breathing in the scent of ink and parchment, smiling with glee as she skimmed over the old text. She could feel Bill's gaze on her as she read over a small poem, grinning when the meaning of it was revealed to her.

"This place is wonderful, where are we?" Mabel sighed, hugging the book to her chest as she turned to meet Bill's rather dumbfounded expression. "What?"

"You just sold your freedom to me and now you're smiling? What's so great about these books anyway? I didn't think reading was your thing." Bill wondered, coming over to take the book from her and put it back.

"Yeah well, I can indulge every now and then can't I?" Mabel blushed, hiding her face from view as she turned to look through the books once more.

"I suppose so, but I thought your brother was the nerdy one, you're the charismatic goofball everyone loves." Bill chuckled, pulling a book from the shelf and handing it to her with a wink. "I think you'll like this one."

Mabel took the book from him gratefully, flipping it open to see the night sky illustrated on the first page. The way the night sky seemed to shine as each star was visible, even galaxies outside of the Milky Way seemed to shimmer along the page.

"That book is all about the stars, it's my favorite one." Bill spoke softly, his eye shining with happiness.

"I can see why, this image makes it all the more dazzling. The night sky always impressed me, ever since I was 2. Mother used to tell me I'd sit up at night and just look out the window, up to the stars. I wish I could be among them sometimes, just to take in their beauty up close." Mabel sighed, closing her eyes as she pictured herself floating amongst the stars, their light shining and giving her hope for the future.

Bill watched, transfixed by the calm look on her face. Seeing her look like this reminded him why he was so fascinated by her in the first place. The way she viewed everything with a sense of childlike wonder, even if she was only 13. Most girls her age were too busy trying to fit in with the crowd, but not her, not his Shooting Star. She stuck out from the norm, made it her duty to stand out from the rest, and he loved her for it. When Dipper had fallen from the tree monster, that light in her eye faded away, leaving behind nothing. She no longer stood out from everyone else, his Shooting Star had finally fallen. He wasn't sure he would be able to kickstart that same flame ever again, but his deal he had struck with her did the trick, for the day at least. He couldn't let her get off scot free with a deal, no, he had to get something in return, so he decided to add a little more to it, subtly without her figuring out what he had meant.

Of course it made him upset to see that even though her brother was back, the light in her eye was dim, barely noticeable and Bill couldn't have that. He wasn't the best with humans, since he wasn't one himself, but he thought pushing her to fight against him would bring that light back, it only made it worse. Now though, he could see that fire come back, the one that had his toes curling and his head grow fuzzy. He hadn't thought that books and the sky would help, but he was glad he found what made her happy. Bill took the book and grabbed her hand, pulling her along with him out the room and down a long hall with doors leading everywhere. Mabel followed obediently, humming as she passed by doors of all shapes and sizes. They stopped in front of one door made out of metal.

"Here we are, I think you're going to like this room most of all." Bill pushed open the door, standing back to let Mabel walk inside.

They were inside an observatory tower, the ceiling made of glass, overlooking the sky. Mabel had a feeling Bill was just projecting the night sky, but it didn't matter, the thousands of stars that flittered across the sky was still strikingly beautiful. The moon was out, but it didn't outshine any of it's friends as it provided light to all. The twinkling of the stars had Mabel sighing, sitting down on the floor as she gazed upward. Bill watched as Mabel's head drooped a bit, her eyes slowly sliding closed. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her to his body as he floated down the hall and into a bedroom. Although there was no color, the room held a quaint feeling to it. Maybe it had to do with the large fireplace that was burning with blue flames or maybe the large bed that was pushed against the wall that made it more homely. Mabel could barely keep her eyes open, but as Bill lowered her to the bed, she could've sworn she saw him kiss her goodnight before he floated out the room, closing the door with a soft click.

Waking up the next morning, Mabel noticed that not one nightmare plagued her sleep as they did the weeks prior, maybe Bill was finally going to ease up on her. She also noticed she was no longer in the room with the fireplace, but instead placed on a couch in a large living room. Not a sound could be heard besides her own breathing. Sitting up off the cushions, she listened for anything that could be distinguished, but still nothing. Sighing, she stood up and paced the room abit. If Bill wanted to leave her in a room where she couldn't go anywhere he would've made a cell or something for her, maybe he wasn't the one to move her. She did have a tendency to wander off in the middle of the night only to wake up in unknown places, but the fact that she actually found a place to sleep was oddly surprising. The hallway was filled with doors, how did she find one with a couch?

Mabel froze when she heard voices, ones she wasn't used to hearing. They sounded muffled, but growing louder. Maybe they were going to come in here. Mabel knew the kinds of friends Bill had, and she didn't want to be pulled apart by some demon because they were bored. She'd rather go out on a date with Gideon than deal with them. Glancing around the room, she found a hiding spot perfect for her to fit in. hoping that they wouldn't turn on the fireplace across from the couch she crawled up inside it, squeezing herself into a tight spot so she wouldn't be seen. No sooner than she got herself situated did the door to the room slam open, and the chattering of voices increased tenfold. Mabel couldn't hear Bill, she assumed that he wasn't with them in the meantime. She just hoped that he was running around trying to find her.

She could hear the sultry voice of someone that didn't sit right with her, as if she had heard that voice before. Mabel was too afraid to peek out from her spot to see who was there, but she didn't need to. Just as the occupants of the room were getting to the topic of what species was the best pet, they stopped talking altogether. Mabel froze when she heard the sound of someone sniffing. There was no way they could smell her. If that was the case, she was as good as dead. Her heart stalled in her chest when she heard a deep raspy laugh burst from one of their mouths. They knew she was there.

"Well well well, what do we have here?" One of them spoke, walking towards the fireplace and reaching up to grab at Mabel who made an attempt to crawl further up it. They gripped her around her neck, hauling her out into the open when she saw at least 6 demons in the room, each of them frightening in their own way. The sultry voice she heard before spoke up, sending her a frightening grin.

"It seems to be that one human that helped defeat us. Maybe we should introduce ourselves." The female shaped demon spoke, her short pink hair falling into her one eye. "My name is Pyronica, these are my friends, 8 Ball, Kryptos, Xanthar, Teeth, and Keyhole. Say hi guys." Each of them said hi to Mabel before Pyronica spoke up once more.

"Now that you know us, why don't we show you a bit of our hospitality?" Pyronica hissed, snapping her fingers as each of the demons stood up.

Mabel curled up into a ball, hiding on the floor as each of them surrounded her, their maniacal laughter echoing all around her. Mabel got the sense of Deja vu as she felt one of them lift her up and throw her to the ground. The impact left her reeling as another grabbed her to do the same. They passed her around in a circle as if it was a game, each taking turns picking her up and throwing her on the ground. That is until one of them, Teeth Mabel thinks grew bored and instead opted to eat her. The 5 others cheered him on as he lowered Mabel to his mouth, the only thing he had besides arms and legs. Just as she was about to touch his tongue, the door to the room slammed open, and in floated a rather red Bill. His usually yellow glow had darkened into a deep red, his eye reflecting the anger that he was feeling.

"Don't touch her! Drop her Teeth!" Bill commanded, glaring harshly at the demon as he dropped her unceremoniously onto the floor.

Mabel moaned as she came in contact with the floor for the gazillionth time that day. Her head was pounding and her body felt numb. Bill marched over to Mabel, picking her up carefully not to hurt her further and gave the rest of his friends a harsh glare before he carried her out of the door, back to the bedroom she slept in. He placed her on the bed a bit harshly, still red from anger. He paced the room the best he could seeing since his feet never once hit the ground.

"I can't believe...Gods their infuriating sometimes!" Bill fumed, crossing his arms over his body as he floated around in a circle.

Mabel watched as he ran himself ragged, seeing how his anger slowly ebbed away into a minor annoyance. She was a bit grateful for him showing up when he did, if she had to suffer through one more moment she would have been food for that one demon. Mabel made an attempt to sit up, struggling as her body protested against moving.

"B-Bill, thank you for helping me...if you weren't there I don't know what would have happened." Mabel whispered, hoping that he would calm down and just talk to her like he did yesterday.

It seemed he had other ideas however, he spun around, that same fire behind his eyes as he glared at her too. He flew over to her, trapping her underneath his pointy body as he pinned her to the bed.

"Why'd you leave the room last night?! If you had stayed put, none of that would've happened! God I swear you're worse than your brother!" Bill hissed, his body flushing red once more as he fussed.

Mabel could feel fear creeping into her, settling itself deep in her stomach. She never liked when Bill was mad, she had seen it quite a few times and it never got any less scary. The way his eyes grew unfocused as he blew his gasket. Mabel could feel herself begin to shake as Bill sent a look down at her, his gaze wavering as he pushed himself further on top of her, crushing her chest. It grew hard for her to breath as he applied more and more pressure, cutting off her air supply as he pushed further and further down.

"B-Bill….p-please…" Mabel begged, her eyes rolling into the back of her head as she reached up to grasp at the sides of Bill's body.

This only seemed to spur him on as he wrapped his hands around her neck and squeezed, leaving deep purple marks along the skin of her neck. Mabel's vision faded as she succumbed to darkness, passing out from the lack of oxygen. Only then did Bill pull back, his breathing labored as he stared down at the sleeping girl. Her breathing was slow and shallow, something he'd be more worried about if he wasn't so mad! It's not like it was all her fault, she was probably just looking for the restroom, weird humans and their bodily functions. It's just, he was so worried when she wasn't in his room and when he found her, trapped in his friend's clutches he lost it. Climbing off of her, he sat at the edge of the bed, rubbing his eye with his hand as he gazed at her, watching how her chest rose and fell slowly, taking in the oxygen he refused to give her moments ago.

Standing up, he flew out the room, locking the door behind him. He sighed, and if he had a mouth he would've frowned. He hadn't lost his temper like that in so long, and he couldn't explain why he did. It seemed the more he hung around this girl, the more unpredictable he became. He didn't waste all of his time waiting for her to fuck up royally so he could come down to claim what was rightfully his. Lost deep in thought as he wandered down the hall, he guessed the only thing he could do from here on out was to avoid the girl at all costs. He didn't want to go nuts on her again, the fear in her eyes enough to make his chest constrict. He didn't want her to fear him, he wanted her to trust him.

Mabel awoke to her stomach growling. She sat up shakily, her head a bit fuzzy from last night's events. She expected to awake to Bill casually sitting near the bed, ready to make a quick remark about how weird humans are when they sleep or something of that caliber. She didn't however, expect the door to be locked from the outside or the bright purple hand marks covering her neck. Reaching a hand up to feel them, she winced as they stung from the contact she made. Closing her eyes, she tried to remember just how she had gotten these wounds, but came up short of an answer. Sighing, she collapsed onto the bed, wishing that Bill would come to unlock the door to let her eat or something, anything besides get stuck in this room where the only company she had was herself in a mirror.

Maybe this was what Bill felt like in the mindscape, all alone, the only person to keep him company being himself. If that was the case, it was no wonder this poor creature was crazy, she'd be too if she had to deal with herself every second of the day. The good thing about being crazy already was that she didn't have to worry about losing her sanity, that's been long gone, since her first pack of smile dip. Mabel shivered, remembering just how terrifying the entire experience was for her. Riding on a shark with lasers coming out of their hands? Yeah definitely crazy.

Closing her eyes, she told herself that Bill would be back in no time, holding out a plate of her favorite cookies and a glass of cool milk for her to wash down the sweet savory flavor of sugar cookies.

Mabel couldn't have been more wrong. Bill wasn't back when she awoke hours later to her stomach practically eating itself, and he still wasn't there when her eyes slowly drooped, her fatigue catching up to her as she waited for Bill to come back. Her appetite was washed away, just like her hope for her friend to come. Her throat was still sore, and to go along with it, she was beyond thirsty. The dryness of her throat only showcasing just how much the bruises stung. She couldn't turn her neck without fire spreading all throughout her body. Mabel was much too tired to lift her head when she heard the sound of shuffling feet come walking down the hallway, she was much too tired when she heard the maniacal cackles from Bill's demon friends as they unlocked the door and made their way inside, and she was far too tired to scream out in pain as she felt Teeth's teeth crunch down on her arm, the sound of Pyronica's laughter ringing in her ears as she lay lifeless under their hands.

It had been days before Bill hauled himself out of his study, taking his monocle off his face as he made his way back down the halls in the direction of Mabel's room. He had put Pyronica on duty of watching over Mabel, making sure the girl was well fed and treated. As he grew closer to the door he left Mabel in, he could hear the rumbustious cries of his friends as they laughed at something. Raising a metaphorical eye brow, he pushed the door open, taking in the sight before him. Mabel laid out on her bed, the covers stained a deep red from her blood. Her body was littered in cuts and bruises that seemed to be infected. Her curvy figure had shrunk into a pitiful mass of bones and skin. She had deep dark circles under her eyes, which were currently leaking water as she cried silently. Teeth had bitten ahold of one of her legs, gnawing on it as the group around him laughed as Mabel squirmed in a pathetic attempt to pull herself away.

Bill saw red. He had trusted Pyronica to watch over his Shooting Star and here she was, laughing and cheering on that ridiculous overgrown chew toy as he bit into his poor girl's leg.

"If you don't let her go right this instant, all of you will taste my wrath and I _know_ that you don't want that." Bill hissed, his form growing larger and larger before it towered over everyone in the room.

Within seconds, the entire room was vacated, save for himself and Mabel who was still prone on the stained sheets. She moaned helplessly, staring up at Bill as he shrunk back down to normal size. He flew over to Mabel, placing a hesitant hand on her shoulder as she groaned in pain. Her cries only increased as he put slight pressure on her. He bent down to press a small kiss to Mabel's forehead, watching how her eyes widened in confusion as his eye pressed against her skin in a strange kiss. She didn't mind though because as soon as his eye came in contact with the burning of her flesh, she felt all her pain melt away, as if he had healed her. She glanced down at herself, a gasp building up in her throat as she surveyed the damage she had taken. Littered all across her body was light scars and dark purple bruises, some so bad they turned a sickly shade of greenish yellow.

"Sorry I couldn't do more to help, my abilities only go so far Shooting Star." Bill said shyly, rubbing a hand at the base of his neck.

Mabel offered him a small smile, a cough tearing through her body and roughing up her throat even more. Bill watched as she turned over, her entire body spasming as her fit passed. She clutched at her throat, motioning for something to drink, which Bill gladly summoned, handing the pitcher to her. Mabel greedily sucked the liquid down, choking on it slightly as she guzzled all of it. Bill could only watch in slight amusement as he saw the light in her eyes grow brighter as he summoned a bit of bread and grapes for her to eat, knowing if she ate too much it would only cause more harm.

Mabel reclined back on her newly made bed, the blood stained sheets replaced with a nice clean pair. Mabel made an attempt to pull Bill into bed with her, telling him it would only be for tonight. He turned her down, his body flushing a bright pink as Mabel crushed him to her chest. How he managed to break free from her grasp he had no idea, he was just glad to be out of that alive. How her family dealt with her on a daily basis he had no idea, even he wasn't that psychotic as to put himself through that. He could tell why they would though, just being around her was enough to make him feel happy. Mabel was a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day, she was all the stars in the sky brightening up even the darkest of caves. Bill got such a rush from her, one he was growing addicted to. It wasn't too long from him being stuck on her, forever a slave to her sweetness and charms, and Bill didn't mind for once. He let himself fully enjoy his time with the girl and the next day when she begged him to sleep with her, he caved.

Lying next to her was definitely different than sitting overtop of her as she sleeped, playing with her hair and holding her hand as she dreamt of everything she could possibly think of. This was much more thrilling. He was up close with her, his arm underneath her head and wrapped protectively around her shoulder as she slept peacefully. He idly played with her hair, too distracted to fall asleep as his infatuation was right in his hands, literally. Oh how he dreamed he would get her to himself like this. Seeing her smiles every morning as she waddled out into the kitchen to grab something to eat, to see her eyes light up as they read together in his study, seeing her cheeks redden when he teased her, even when she grew angry with him the way her cheeks puffed out a bit and her eyes flashed with a sudden fire that he wanted to burn in.

"Bill..? What are you doing up still?" He heard his Star's voice break him out of his stupor, making him jump.

"Oh nothing Shooting Star, just thinking." He whispered, kissing her eyelids as she smiled.

"Well instead of that, why don't you lie down and get some sleep, we have a long day ahead of us and I don't want you tired for the trip to Sweater town." Mabel reasoned, giving him a peck on the cheek as she turned over, her back facing him.

Bill could only hum in agreement as he settled down next to her, pulling her body up against his hard one, if only he had skin like she did. With that last final thought he fell asleep, ready for the upcoming days ahead, so long as his Shooting Star was right there alongside him.


	5. Chapter 5

"Grunkle Ford, it's been weeks! When are we gonna have that portal up and running anytime soon?" Dipper asked, raising his arms in the air for emphasis.

"I don't know, Dipper. Wherever Mabel is, I'm sure she's fine, Bill wouldn't break his end of the deal." Ford reasoned with the boy, glancing in his direction for a second before going back to screwing a bolt into place.

"Yeah Dip, you just gotta trust Mabel that she's putting up a good fight with that twisted triangle and if I know my great niece like I do, then I know he's not having the best luck with her." Stan piped in, patting Dipper on the shoulder before he began to help his brother with the machine.

"Yeah...yeah you're both right! Mabel's doing fine and she's probably annoying the heck out of Bill right about now, a win win!" Dipper declared, scurrying off to help with the machine as well.

"With the help I'm getting, it won't be long before this portal is up and running. The only problem we face is what dimension they are in. I don't want to have to go through them all to find them either." Ford muttered, scratching at his chin in thought.

The three of them worked in silence for awhile, only stopping to eat and use the restroom. They had been working on the machine for a few weeks now, three at most and they still weren't anywhere closer to finding Mabel. It was taking a toll on all of them, the goof ball hadn't been there to lighten the mood once so ever and it was starting to show on them all. Dipper was as wimpish as usual, scared of his own shadow half the time, Stan was rather grumpy that his t.v. buddy wasn't there to watch reruns of shows with, and Ford was a little testy with everyone. They hadn't realized just how much Mabel affected them until she was gone.

Dipper sighed and stepped away from the portal, glancing up at his grunkles before telling them he was off to sleep, yawning as he stepped up the stairs and into the main hall of the Mystery Shack. Pushing past the swinging door, he made his way up to the bedroom he and his sister shared in the attic, flopping down onto the pillows before he fell asleep, his dreams centered around his light hearted sister and the evil triangle that took her.

Bill woke to a rather hyper Mabel. She was gazing at him from above, her eyes wide as she touched his face. Little sounds of surprise slipping past her lips as she poked and prodded his mouth. Wait what? Bill sat upright, glancing down at himself to see that he in fact had a mouth as well as hair and skin. Blinking in surprise, he glanced over to Mabel, watching as her face flushed a deep red before she turned away, hiding her face in her hands. Bill rose an eyebrow at her, confused by her reaction. He voiced his question and in response he got a shaky hand to prod his chest and stomach.

"You're not wearing clothing." Mabel said simply, glancing at him through her fingers before she closed them once more, her face still bright red.

Bill grinned, snapping his fingers. He was now fully dressed in a pair of black dress pants, shoes to match. He wore a white dress shirt underneath a yellow tailcoat, his black bow tie and top hat still in place. Only then did Mabel pull her hands away from her face, although her blush didn't die down like Bill had thought it would, in fact, it only grew brighter. He didn't dwell on that long though, instead he took her by the hand, pulling her up to stand and got her something to wear. Mabel glanced down at the sweater and skirt combo, seeming to match what Bill was wearing.

Her skirt was black and flowed down to her knees, fitting rather snug on her hips and thighs, her sweater was the same color as Bill's tailcoat, a triangular shape on the front that had one eye on it. She wore her normal flats, grinning in the mirror as she saw just how cute she looked. Her hair was a bit messy, but she was sure Bill could help her with that. Spinning around to face the demon, she smiled at the look on his face. He had a small blush on his face, his mouth agape, little puffs of air passing his lips as he gawked at her. Mabel felt a blush rise to her face as she saw his awestruck expression, making her a bit shy as she twirled her skirt a tad. Bill cleared his throat, bringing a hand up to his mouth as he looked away, muttering to her that he would do her hair later after breakfast.

He left the room, muttering to himself about how humans grow up so fast and other random things like that. Mabel couldn't suppress a small giggle that slipped past her lips, he looked so cute like that. If only she had a camera with her. Skipping out the room, she followed Bill's long tailcoat trailing behind him as he made his way to his kitchen. As Mabel skipped into the room to make them something to eat, she ran into Bill's back. Blinking her eyes, she craned her neck up to look at him, realizing just how much bigger he was compared to her. He glared at something she couldn't see. She peeked around his waist, squeaking in surprise when he put his hand behind him to hold her back, glancing at her in warning before he strolled into the kitchen, grabbing the mystery being by the neck and holding them against the wall. Mabel couldn't make out who it was, but she saw a black suit and bowler hat to match.

"What are you doing here Tad?" Bill hissed, his grip on the guy's neck tightening as the man chuckled.

"Well I heard that you had a new mystery gal hiding in your dreamscape and I had to come see for myself. Oh and what do you know, there she is!" The man named Tad extended his arm out to Mabel, giving her a grin before he introduced himself. "My name's Tad Strange, at your service Mabel."

"Are you like Bill?" Mabel asked, walking into the room despite the glare Bill sent her way.

"While I'm not human, I'm not like Bill either little lady. If it wasn't for the death grip he had on my neck I'd be over there to greet you properly." Tad send Bill a rather heated stare, earning a scoff in response.

"You're not getting any closer to Shooting Star, especially because I'm here. Just because you think you can walk around and do whatever you want Tad, doesn't mean you can meddle in my business." Bill growled, releasing the grip he had on his neck.

"Anyway, it's a pleasure to meet you Miss Mabel." Tad walked closer, bowing slightly to the girl as he placed a kiss to her hand.

Mabel flushed, giving Tad a small smile in return as he glanced up from where he was kissing her hand. Before Tad could do anything else, he was pulled back by Bill who fumed.

"What did I just say, Strange? Not to get any closer and what did you just do?!" Bill shouted, standing in front of Mabel protectively as Tad brushed off his suit jacket.

"Well I couldn't leave such a pretty little lady all alone as you griped about something. You certainly weren't going to give her any attention, so I did." Tad responded, shrugging his shoulders in response. "And since when did you have a different form? I've only seen that horrendous triangle before."

"I'm not sure where this came from, I woke up to this earlier. Mabel wouldn't leave my face alone." Bill grinned, glancing back at the girl behind him to see her blush back full force.

"You two shared a bed?" Tad asked, raising an eyebrow at the sudden flush that grew across Bill's face.

"Not in the way you're thinking, you jackass!" Bill groaned, raising a hand up to hide his exasperated expression from view.

He could hear how Mabel giggled from behind him, her hand placed on the side of his waist as she glanced up at him from underneath his arm. The light blush on her cheeks made her tanned face glow with happiness, something that Bill just couldn't get used to no matter how many times he'd seen it.

"Well if you'll excuse me, I must be going. I had a meeting this morning that I missed to visit you two." Tad placed a kiss back on Mabel's hand as he walked out the door, bidding them both a wonderful rest of their day as the door closed behind him.

"Who was that, Bill?" Mabel asked as she went to the fridge to pull out some eggs for breakfast.

"Just some acquaintance of mine. Try to steer clear of him, you don't want him bothering you." Bill muttered, sitting down at the small table not too far away where he could watch Mabel make their food.

As they ate, talking idly with one another, they planned the day together. After Bill fixed her hair, they would go out to sweater town and goof off there for a good long while, then come back to relax and eat lunch before settling down and watching some movies that Mabel wanted to watch with him before dinner. All in all, it was a full day, packed with fun and memories for the two to share. Mabel brought a camera with her, ready to take pictures so she could scrapbook them later, much to Bill's chagrin.

The two had more fun than they expected. Bill was messing around with some yarn folk, while Mabel ran around and used anything she could find to knit things. At one point she picked up one of the little people and started making a sweater for Bill, only to scream in surprise when the sweater began to talk. Bill fell flat on his rump he was laughing so hard. After being banished from sweater town, they found themselves back at home, eating lunch which consisted of some sandwiches and Mabel's very own Mabel Juice. Bill nearly died when he tasted the strange concoction of sugar and more sugar and even more sugar mixed with juice she found in the fridge. He couldn't understand how she drank that stuff without keeling over, but if she was happy he'd let it be. After lunch they sat down on the couch in a different room, a t.v. hung up on top of a fireplace that was burning brightly.

Mabel popped in a movie, saying that you haven't lived until you've watched this magnificent piece of work. For once in Bill's life, he had to agree with her. The movie she called, _The Holy Grail_ had him laughing more than it should've. He noticed some of the stares he received from the young girl, ones filled with happiness and joy. He couldn't explain the feeling he got every time she glanced at him like that, it made his chest tighten and his blood ran still.

' _Maybe this was what love felt like.'_ He pondered, watching how Mabel's eyes widened a bit before she laughed at something in the movie.

' _Well whatever it is, I like it.'_ Bill grinned, resting his arm around Mabel's shoulders, ignoring the wide eyed stare he received from her.

She didn't move away like he had expected her to, instead she shifted closer to him, resting her head against his chest, her face flushed a bright pink. He couldn't help himself, he bent down and placed a kiss on the top of her head, watching how her flushed appearance became frazzled. Her eyes fluttered closed as she listened to the thump of Bill's heart in his chest, smiling when he bent down and placed kiss after kiss on her head and cheeks. She gave him a small grin when he reached her mouth, pecking her softly as he wished her sweet dreams and carried her off to bed, the movie still playing in the background as the door shut behind them.

Bill placed the sleepy girl on the bed, kissing her once more before she passed out, her soft snores filling the room. He gave her a soft smile, playing with her hair idly as he watched her sleep. He wasn't tired himself, but he didn't want to leave her in here all alone, so he stayed by her side, holding her hand and twirling her hair around his fingers as her breathing soothed him. Bill soon found himself drooping every now and then, his hand stilling in her hair as he teetered on the edge of sleep. He yawned, stretching his back before he too crawled into bed, kicking off his dress shoes before he curled around Mabel, holding her hands in his as he breathed in her scent. Placing one final kiss to the crown of her head, he fell asleep, meeting Mabel in their dreams as they slept peacefully together.

"Heh, pitiful." A deep voice echoed throughout the room.

Tad watched the two sleep for a bit, a frown on his face as he saw the peaceful look on Bill's face. He couldn't believe that the same demon that had wreaked havoc on Gravity Falls only a few months ago can go and make it up to the very person that helped cause it. Of course Bill tricked her, but that doesn't mean she didn't help. She handed him the rift, she caused it all. Bill knew this, Tad knew this, even Mabel knew it. Maybe that was why she offered herself up to him, in exchange for her brother's safety, to make up for her mistakes and to mend them. Whatever the reason was, Tad didn't know, but what he did know was that he wasn't going to let those two be happy. There was no way he'd just let them go after what they caused him, he lost his very life in that and turned into this monstrosity.

The frown still on Tad's face, he walked closer to the bed, taking a strand of Mabel's hair in between his fingers. A wicked grin split across his face. He knew just how to punish them. Tad chuckled, pulling his hand out of Mabel's hair roughly, watching how her face scrunched up in pain for a moment before she settled back down. He placed a hand on Mabel's head, watching how she glowed purple for a second before the color died down. With a snap of his fingers, he and Mabel had teleported back to his own dreamscape. When Bill woke up without Mabel next to him, that triangular freak would lose it. Tad wasn't sure just how long it would be before Bill came to kill him for taking her but his revenge would pay off in due time. Now all that was left was to wait for Mabel to wake up so he could mess with her. It would be rude to bother a sleeping lady.

The morning soon came, along with the large headache that came with a screaming girl. How Bill could think that this was pleasing to the ears was beyond him, but Tad put up with it all for his plan. He would get the girl to trust him in the short time he had before Bill came knocking down his door and taking her away, but hopefully that was enough time for the two to become "acquainted". Tad tried to calm the girl down, handing her snacks and gifts to make her happy, but all that did was cause her to grow uncomfortable and silent. He didn't want her to feel unwelcome, that would put a kink in his plan. Sighing, he got up and left the room he kept Mabel in, walking down his hallway and into a study filled with books. He had no idea that she had followed him, but her small gasp had him looking up from his desk covered in work to see her looking around the room with a gleam in her eye. She scanned the walls lined with books, searching for something she wanted, but frowned when she couldn't find it.

"What're you looking for? I could help you in finding it." Tad offered, walking over to where she was as she glanced around.

"You don't have anything about the stars, or space. It's all about history." Mabel pouted, crossing her arms as she sunk to the ground.

Tad almost laughed at her display of annoyance, she was still young after all, and she definitely acted her age. A scoff caught his attention as he glanced down at where the girl was seated. She seemed to be glaring at him, but to him it looked more like an annoyed stare.

"I most certainly am not childish, I just know how to have fun and just because I do doesn't make me any less smarter than the next guy. Yes I might not be a scholar like my brother, but I can do so many other things that he can't. Like befriend a crazy dream demon, kill a unicorn to get its hair, make so many friends out of enemies. So if I were you, I'd think twice about looking down on me. I know you're using me to get back at Bill for whatever he did, you think I didn't hear you earlier? You're not exactly quiet when you sceme." Mabel growled, sending a final glare up at Tad before she stalked off, out the door and back down the hall.

"Damn Mabel, I've got to give her some credit. She seemed like such a happy ball of sunshine so often. It's kind of good to know she's not as ditzy as she seems." Tad spoke aloud, rubbing his hand down the side of his face as he watched the study door slam closed behind the upset girl.

As Mabel passed by doors that led to wherever, she felt sad. Her Bill wasn't here to get her out. She thought he would've known who had taken her and been here as soon as he woke up to bring her back with him, she wished he had. Maybe he didn't know who took her, maybe he was being pestered by his friends as to where she was so they could mess with her again. Whatever the reason was, Mabel was hoping he'd be here soon, she didn't feel safe with Tad. He seemed so standoffish, like Ford the first time she had met him, only more cruel and wicked. Not exactly like Bill, Tad seemed more unstable than her demon, more dangerous than Bill. It made her instincts go wild in his presence, like he would snap and kill her without a second thought.

Reaching the room she was in earlier, she opened the door and locked in from the inside in a poor attempt to keep Tad out. She knew he could probably just blow the door off it's hinges if he wanted, but the lock made her feel a bit safer. Curling up on the bed, Mabel closed her eyes, letting a few tears slip down her cheeks and wetting the blankets underneath her. She missed Bill and his snarky comments on everything, she missed his kind nature despite being a demon, she missed the way they talked with one another, she just wished he was here to save her from this nightmare. Letting her tears fall, she fell asleep, her dreams on her knight in shining armor saving her from the evil prince.

When Bill woke that morning to an empty bed, he didn't freak out. He figured that Mabel had woken up early to use the bathroom or make breakfast for the two. When he checked the kitchen and the bathroom and found that they were both empty, he started to get worried. She couldn't leave on her own, so he knew she wasn't by herself, but he couldn't think who would've been able to take her. Her stupid family was still far from finishing their portal to wherever it led to get her so it couldn't have been them. The longer she was away from him the more worried he got. It wasn't until around lunch time did he finally realize who had her, and when he did he saw red. Within seconds he was in Tad's dreamscape, pinning the other demon to a wall as he snarled in his face.

Bill saw the fear deep in Tad's purple glowing eyes, hidden behind the mask he had put up when he was slammed against the wall. Bill felt his flames lick the sides of his body, warming him a bit as he held Tad up by his neck. The other demon hung in the air limply, watching as Bill's eyes landed on him. Tad could feel his heart racing, he didn't expect this much of a reaction out of him.

"Where's Mabel!? I swear to me if you hurt a hair on her head…" Bill growled, his arm pressed against Tad's neck as he got in his face.

"I haven't touched her Cipher, she's not here." Tad said, motioning to the room he was in with his eyes.

Bill didn't turn around, he stayed right where he was, his red eye staring right into Tad's as his hold on Tad's neck tightened. If the demon needed air to survive, he'd be long dead by now, but thanks to Bill he didn't. He could feel the bones in his neck crack from the pressure behind the hold but otherwise he didn't feel anything, not even the pain that should've been there.

"Bill?" A soft voice called out to them from the doorway.

Mabel stood inside, her hand rubbing at her eye as she yawned. Besides looking like she just woke up, she seemed fine. Before Tad could blink, the pressure around his throat disappeared and he fell to the ground. The sound of Mabel squeaking in surprise had him looking up. Bill had wrapped Mabel in a hug, his arms encircling her waist as he held her to him. Mabel's arms immediately wrapped around his shoulders, burying her face into his neck as she hid her face from view. Light sobs slipped from her lips as she let Bill lower her to the ground, still holding onto him for dear life as she cried into his neck. Tad could see that Bill's shoulders were shaking as well, and he blinked as he noticed the wet trail of tears that slid down Bill's cheeks. Bill had placed kisses all along Mabel's face, muttering to her sweet nothings as he rocked her to his chest.

Tad could barely believe his eyes. In front of him was the deranged dream demon that tried to destroy Mabel's dimension along with herself. Yet now, the two were gripping one another like their lives depended on it. Mabel's soft sobs built up in strength and before Tad knew it she was in full on hysterics. He could see the tears slipping down her face, snot dripping from her nose as she cried onto Bill, who didn't mind in the slightest and seemed no better than her. His shoulders were still shaking and Tad could hear his own cries of relief coming from him. The two seemed so lost to everything but themselves and it made Tad feel a bit remorseful. Bill pulled Mabel onto his lap, holding her to his chest as he stood up on shaky legs.

Bill turned to Tad, and the look on Bill's face had Tad gasping. The demon's one eye was red and bloodshot, his cheeks were wet from his tears and his lower lip trembled as he held Mabel to him. He gave Tad a rather weak glare before they were both gone, leaving Tad to his own thoughts. Back in Bill's mindscape, the two could spread out on a bed as they hugged one another, Mabel tucked into Bill's warm embrace as they reacquainted themselves with one another. Mabel's tears had died down a bit, now only the occasional slipped from her eyes as she gazed into Bill's bloodshot yellow orb in front of her. He glanced down at her lips for a split second before he looked back up into her eyes. Mabel pushed her lips against his own, tilting her head to get a better angle before she pulled him in closer.

The kiss they shared was filled with longing and love, warming the two and filling them with glee. As they broke so Mabel could breathe, Bill pulled her to his chest once more, placing a kiss to the top of her head before he settled down for a nap, one that Mabel was grateful for. The two fell asleep almost instantly, their bodies intertwined with one another as they slept, keeping the other as close as possible so the other couldn't disappear by the time they woke up.


	6. Chapter 6

When Mabel woke up early that morning, she found herself still firmly tucked into Bill's chest, his light snores ringing in her ears as she struggled to pull out of his grip. She had to use the bathroom and being stuck like this wasn't going to help her predicament. She didn't want to wake him, but she could tell struggling like this wasn't going to free her anytime soon so she pecked him on the mouth, hoping that it would wake him. When it didn't she tried again, using a little more force this time. Still nothing, groaning she tried one last time, pressing her mouth against his she kissed him with everything she had, and nearly cried when he returned the kiss with as much vigor as she put into it.

Pulling away, she puffed as he laughed at her expression. He let her go and watched as she jumped up and flew out of bed, rushing out the door and down the hall to the bathroom. He chuckled to himself, pulling the covers back and crawling out of them, making the bed before he walked down the hallway in the direction of the kitchen, in a rather good mood from the good morning kiss he received. When Mabel got into the kitchen, Bill was already sitting at the table, reading a book as he waited for her. When he heard the door open, he offered the girl a smile, getting one in return before she made her way to the fridge to dig out supplies for breakfast. Settling on French toast, she made a few slices, just enough for the two of them as she placed his plate down in front of him.

Bill said his thanks as he began to eat, Mabel sitting across from him as she dug into her breakfast too. They ate in a comfortable silence, enjoying each other's company in the early morning.

"So Bill, what is on our agenda for today? I was thinking we could go back to sweater town and get kicked out again." Mabel rambled, clasping her hands together in front of her as she day dreamed about their adventures to come.

"Well I guess we could, first we need to go out and check on something important first." Bill took a sip from a mug of coffee Mabel had just finished brewing.

"What is it?" Mabel asked, tilting her head to the side slightly.

Bill flushed a bit, clearing his throat before he stood up, taking his empty plate to the sink to be washed later. Grabbing Mabel from around the wrist, he led her out of the kitchen and into the long hallway. Mabel glanced up at the blond beside her, a small smile on her face. She hummed to herself, skipping alongside Bill as he looked for something she didn't know. Halting in front of a small door painted a dark red, he pushes it open and motions for her to wait here. She pouts but otherwise does as she is told, crossing her arms as she plops to the ground. Bill pats her on the head, offering her a smile before he walks through the door and shuts it behind him. Mabel groans out loud, rolling her eyes as a loud crash comes from beyond the closed off room.

' _He's probably doing that on purpose just to make me want to go in more. The jerk.'_ Mabel sneers, trying her hardest to ignore the mysterious sounds as they grow in intensity.

Just when she thought the entire place would blow, the door is slammed open, and a rather peeved looking Bill comes barreling out. Mabel reaches a hand out, placing it softly on his arm. A crease forms in Bill's brow as he spins on his heel to glare at Mabel.

"What do you want now, Twerp? Can't you see I'm busy here?" He hisses, waving the hand on his arm off as he stomps down the hallway, leaving Mabel to flock after him.

"Bill wait! I can't keep up with you. What's wrong?" Mabel shouts after him, nearly running into his back as he stops short in front of her.

"You're what's wrong, I can't get you to leave my side for more than a minute and it's driving me sane! Why did I think that this deal would be worth it? You're a worthless child that won't shut up. I should have left you with Tad." Bill growls, his eye flashing a deep red as he turns to face Mabel.

Mabel says nothing as Bill casts her one last glare before he saunters back down the hall, not casting one look back at the girl. Mabel feels tears prick the corner of her eyes, her shoulders shaking with repressed cries.

"If that's how you feel, I'll just go back to him then!" Mabel cries, spinning around to search for a door out of here.

She misses the look Bill casts her as she walks off, and she misses the large grin spread across his face as his form slowly fades from Bill to Tad. Mabel pauses at a door, a symbol of a square etched into the purple wood. Twisting the handle, she pushes the door wide open, walking inside hesitantly. Inside is a large living room, the walls still boring and drab. Resting on one of the various love seats is none other than Tad himself. He glances up at the sound of his door opening, a grin growing across his face when Mabel's head peeks through the crack.

"Good afternoon, my dear. What brings you to my mindscape?" Tad inquires, motioning for Mabel to take a seat next to him.

She does so hesitantly, sitting rigidly as Tad sits up to make room for them on the small chair. Mabel closes her eyes, breathing in slowly to fight off tears as Tad rests his hand on her shoulder.

"Bill's being a jerk again so I came here to calm down I guess, sorry for intruding." Mabel apologizes, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.

Tad nods his head in understanding, his hand moving from her shoulder to the small of her back, rubbing in small circles that leaves Mabel squirming in discomfort. The two sit in silence for a bit, Tad's hands never ceasing in his strokes and Mabel's squirming growing more and more intense the longer his hand stays where it is. Fighting back harsh words, Mabel turns to face Tad, halting his stroking. Tad's eyes narrow slightly as he watches Mabel scoot away from him ever so slightly. Placing a hand on her knee, he waves his hand and within seconds they are in a different room.

The room's decor mirrors a bedroom without the bed, there is a closet stuffed with clothes that match the outfit he is wearing, a dresser pushed up against the wall and a small desk covered in papers. Raising an eyebrow, Mabel voices her question.

"Why isn't there a bed?"

"Well you see, being a demon means that I don't have a need to sleep, it's more of a hobby that some of us partake in. I, on the other hand, don't much care for it." He waves his hand once more and a large bed with a canopy appears dead center of the room.

Tad walks over to the piece of furniture, sitting down on the edge as he motions for Mabel to follow. Growing uneasy, she shuffles her feet as she shambles her way over. Tad must've grown impatient with her for she is lifted into the air, purple tendrils of smoke surrounding her as they pull her towards the bed, Tad's open arms waiting for her. He envelopes her into an embrace, his mouth resting right by her ear as he settles her into his lap. Mabel squirms for a moment, growing still as she hears the intake of breath in her ear followed by a muffled groan that works its way up Tad's throat.

"Mabel my dear, unless you're going to do that without any clothes on I suggest not doing that again." Tad grunts.

Mabel tries to sit still, she really does, it's just so weird to sit still in someone's lap, especially someone she barely knows. Within minutes she's back to squirming in Tad's lap, her hands wringing in front of her. Tad groans again, his hands finding their way around Mabel's waist as he attempts to still her, but only fuels her further. Tad gives up on trying to stop her, instead he lifts her off of his lap, placing her next to him. He wraps an arm around her waist, keeping her tucked into his side as he shifts in his slacks. Breathing heavily, he glances down to look at Mabel. A bright blush is staining her cheeks as she looks anywhere but at him. He can't help the small grin that spreads across his face as he watches her squirm again.

"Mabel dear, maybe we could go down and make some lunch? You seem quite famished." Tad purrs, taking Mabel by the hand and leading her out of the room and down a set of stairs.

He pulls her through a door, leading her through a small dining room and to the kitchen. The cabinets are a dark wood color, with granite colored counters. Stainless steel appliances are strewn about, making it feel modern despite the rustic atmosphere. Tad pulls out a bar stool, motioning for Mabel to sit down. She gracefully slides into the seat offered to her, muttering a thank you as Tad turns to shuffle through the fridge. He pulls out some ham and bread from the pantry. Placing two plates down, he snaps his fingers and the bread and meat lift out of its respectable containers and onto the plates. He waves his hand and the meat and bread are put back in their containers and placed back where they belong.

Mabel watches as he whisks out cups, pouring out some juice to go along with the sandwiches. He comes back over to her, placing down a plate and a cup for her and sits down next to her. The two eat in silence, the sound of chewing and slurping the only thing to accompany their silence. Mabel thinks back to her fight with Bill. He was being oddly out of character. He never called her worthless before, not even when he hated her guts. Tad could practically feel the wheels in Mabel's head turning, it wouldn't be long before Mabel figured out just what he was up to, but maybe he had enough time to ruin her image of Bill before hand.

They finished their lunch, placing the dishes in the sink before Tad grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the kitchen, down a rather long hallway. It wasn't exactly like the one in Bill's mindscape, the doors weren't all shapes and sizes, but rather normal looking bedroom doors. Each of them were closed, so Mabel couldn't see inside, but that didn't bother her as much as the silence that had fallen over them. It was stifling, weighing her down and making her uncomfortable. Tad didn't seem to notice though, for he kept walking down further and further down the hallway with no end in sight.

After what feels like hours, he finally stopped in front of a plain looking door, not particularly different from the others, yet something about it set Mabel on edge. Sliding behind Tad a bit, she peeked out from behind him when he pushed open the door. Heat hit her in the face as she walked out from behind him, her mouth hanging wide open.

Bill frowned as he watched those stupid Pines put the finishing touches on their portal. It had been nearly two months of continuous work on their part. Even with the constant interruptions that Bill had set up to slow their progress. Growling in frustration, he spun on his tail, walking back out of the door and into the hallway where he told Mabel to wait. When he walked out however and saw that she wasn't there he frowned.

' _Now where could she have gone off to? It's not like she can leave.'_ Bill thought, heading back the way he came into their bedroom. Pushing open the door, he glanced inside, she wasn't there.

' _Maybe she's gone to the bathroom?'_ She wasn't there either.

' _She's gotta be in the kitchen.'_ He stormed the room, tearing apart cupboards in his wake.

Growing frantic, he started opening random doors, looking inside in hopes of finding his Shooting Star, to no avail. She wasn't in his mindscape any longer. Bill saw red. How dare that girl just wander off and leave him to his own devices. They made a deal dammit! How was he going to find her if he didn't even know where to look! Closing his eyes, he pushes back a groan of annoyance, trying his hardest to ignore the slight feeling of worry settle in his stomach. What if she was hurt somewhere? He can't stand the thought of losing her, to anyone or anything. He had just gotten her, he wasn't about to lose her. With a snap of his fingers he was traveling across dimensions, searching. First he checked her own, making sure she didn't find a way to go crawling back to her family. When he was sure she wasn't there, he checked Sweater Town and all the ones they visited.

Bill had gone through just about every dimension that he had been and there was still no sign of his bubbly companion. He was about to give up, she was just...gone. There was no other place she could be. Maybe he should've kept better tabs on her, maybe this was his fault.

Bill stopped, pondering. Maybe this was his fault. He did leave her alone, in a foreign place. She didn't know his mindscape like he did, she probably got herself hurt wandering around, maybe that's why he couldn't find her. Fighting back a sob lodged in his chest, he teleported back to his mindscape. His Shooting Star was gone, never again to be seen. She had burnt out, falling out of view as she hurtled past him. He would never see her bright smile and beautiful brown eyes. He would never hear her light snores as she slept or her bubbly laugh when he made some crude joke. He would never again experience her warm hugs that made his very being sing. He'd never see her again.

Slumping over, Bill collapsed to the ground. His eye stung with water, leaking down his cheek and onto his hands which covered his face. Loud hiccups escaped his mouth, his shoulders shaking as he cried. Bill looked up, his face puffy and red when he heard the sound of a snort. Tad was in front of him, towering over his fallen form. Bill made no move to hide his tears nor did he move to clean them, he simply sat there.

"What's the matter, Bill? Lose something?" Tad cackled, stepping aside to show Bill Mabel's unconscious form lying on the ground behind him. Bill jumped up, reaching a hand out to press it to Mabel's hair, but was stopped by Tad, who stepped out in front of her once more. Hissing, Bill flung himself at Tad, attempting to throw him off kilter and out of his way. Tad only sidestepped, moving out of the line of fire as Bill came rushing past.

"If you don't give her back, so help me I will strike you down Strange." Bill warned, his eyes flashing red.

Tad said nothing as Bill staggered, losing his balance as he shifted from one foot to the next. Tad glanced at Bill's leg, grimacing as he took notice of the way it was bent. Bill seemed unaffected by the injury, positioning himself to charge again.

"Alright Cipher, how about this? I'll give her back to you, but tomorrow you give her back and we'll trade off days? Sound fair?" Tad grinned, watching as Bill stood up a bit, glancing behind him a bit.

Tad spun around, seeing a flash of red before he lost consciousness. Mabel stood overtop of Tad, a frying pan held tightly in her hands. Her eyes were hardened into a glare, cast downward on the fallen being. She tossed the pan to the side, hitting the ground with a thud, before she launched herself into Bill's arms. Nuzzling into his shoulder, she smiled, she was where she belonged.

Bill caressed the back of Mabel's head, his hand tangling into her hair. Mabel hummed, leaning into the soft touches from Bill, pulling back to look up at him.

"Let's go home, alright?" She whispered, leaning forward to place a kiss upon his lips.

Bill grinned, placing her down on the ground, holding her hand. With a snap, they were back in Bill's mindscape. Mabel pulled her hand out of Bill's, giving him a grateful smile before she skipped down the hall. Bill watched her as she opened a door, casting him a small glance before she walked inside. Bill stood in his place even after the door was closed. A hand on his head, he pondered just when he grew to hold such strong feelings for the girl he had here. It certainly was a long time, that he was sure about. It could've been when he first laid eyes on her. When that rickety bus pulled up with them inside, he could see her radiant smile from a thousand miles away. It was as if all had stopped. He could've sworn their eyes locked for a moment, her grin never faltering as she peered out the window into nothingness and he stared right back. Her brown eyes held him captive even as the bus pulled out of view, her stunning smile and bright brown eyes forever burned into his mind.

Groaning, he gave chase to the girl, his shoes clacking on the ground beneath his feet as he followed in her footsteps. She went into his observatory, one of their favorite rooms. Pushing open the door, he was met with a beautiful sight. Mabel was lying down on her back, her eyes fixed upon the ceiling of stars above them. Bill bent down to lie next to her, his arms coming to rest underneath his head for support. He could hear the sound of her steady breathing right by his ear, fanning across his neck as she turned to look at him. Her eyes clashed with his own eye and for once, Mabel felt that she could really see him. Not as some dream demon that hated her family and wanted them dead, but as a lost soul, one that was just out of reach of saving. Bill had always been a mystery, maybe that was why her family had been so curious about him. Mabel on the other hand, she just saw him as another being just trying to live in this confusing world that she calls home.

She could see that he wasn't exactly looking for help. He seemed to know what he was doing, but when she looked into his eyes, she could see that uncertainty that lie there. He was just as afraid as anyone else. He was trapped in a bubble for so long, nowhere to go and nowhere to hide, Mabel felt like that too sometimes. That was why she went out looking for him. The first few weeks of being in Gravity Falls was a bit mind boggling, her brother wanting to go out all the time in search for new things, and Mabel was all for it, but it frightened her. New things scared her, like when Dipper told her that he wanted to stay in Gravity Falls with Grunkle Ford to be his apprentice. She thought they would stay together through high school, then he would go off and into college where he would study some boring nerd stuff and she'd be left behind, a memory long forgotten and faded. He would leave her behind and meet new friends, forgetting all about his twin sister suck in hell.

Maybe that was why she struck a deal with him, maybe this was all her fault. Her family was suffering because of her. She was just trying to help, her and Bill were the same, longing for that sense of comfort and familiarity. Maybe it was all a ruse to get her to make that deal with him, but it calmed Mabel's worries. Her brother and her would be together forever, that she was sure of. There was no way he would leave her after what she had done. She just hoped that once they found out, they would understand that she was only doing it out of the kindness of her heart.

Sure it was out of selfishness too, but aren't they all selfish too? I mean, Dipper was going to leave her behind, she couldn't just stand there and watch him walk out of her life. Then she was going to have to leave town, her home far behind her as she went back to Piedmont. So what if she made that wish that kept them there? It wasn't like they were going to leave anyway. So what if she wished that summer would never end? It wasn't like they wanted to go back to school. Grunkle Stan and Ford didn't even go to school. They had a shack to run, and it was busiest during the summer when kids had off. She was helping them, she was making their lives easier!

So why, why did she feel so guilty?

She made everything so simple for everyone, but it wasn't. Her end of the bargain wasn't yet fulfilled, and Bill isn't the one to let it go, he was going to want her payment soon enough. Maybe this new deal they made was good enough, leaving her family alone if she offered herself, but his price on the last one was more hefty. He wanted freedom, and she was just the one to give it to him.

"Shooting Star? You alright?" Bill's voice broke through her crowded haze and brought her back to the present.

"Yeah...I'm fine." Mabel spoke, a fake smile on her face.

Bill didn't seem to notice, or maybe he didn't care enough, but he did stand up, stretching his hand out to her for her to grab.

"Come on, let's go to bed. This day has been a long one." Bill pulled her up to her feet, taking them back to the bedroom and placing her down on the bed.

He wished her a good night before he crawled into bed too, snuggling up to her. Mabel felt his breathing slow, until he was fast asleep. Frowning, she turned over to face him, his one eye closed and the other hidden behind his eyepatch, his blond hair falling just over his forehead, barely brushing his eye lid. Burying a hand into his hair, she too fell asleep. The sound of their gentle snores carrying them off into their land of slumber.


	7. Chapter 7

***WARNING* This chapter has a bit of more mature material, if you don't want to read it, skip ahead, I'll warn you of when the time comes. *WARNING OVER***

Bill woke up before Mabel, his arms still wrapped around her smaller frame. Her light snores filling his ears as he watched her sleep. He had a strand of her hair wrapped around his fingers, twirling it idly as he envisioned the plans he had in store for her. He would cook them something to eat, take her to a new dimension, bring her home after lunch and watch a bunch of movies together. Hearing Mabel's breathing hitch brought him out of his thoughts. Glancing down at her, he noticed that she was still sleeping, her eyes closed and face still pressed into his side. Her mouth curved down into a frown as a few whimpers slipped past her lips.

Bill tapped her on the shoulder, shook her arm, even nipped at her cheeks and lips harshly to wake her, but she didn't stir. Her eyes clenched tightly shut as she squirmed next to him. Bill pulled his hand away when Mabel flung her arm out to strike him, her pleas to leave her be like knives to his heart.

"Shooting Star, come on wake up. It's me. You don't have to be afraid, I'm right here." Bill pleaded, grabbing ahold of her arm as it came flying at him again, holding her still.

Mabel still wouldn't wake up. He was contemplating on splashing her with water when her eyes flung open, her body going stiff as she stared up past him to nothingness. Her breathing was labored and harsh, her eyes not leaving the ceiling above them even as he pulled her to his chest, rocking her slowly to calm her. Mabel wouldn't relax.

"Shooting Star, come on it's alright. I'm here, you're safe. What's got you so stirred up anyway?" Bill asked, rubbing her back as she clenched his shirt in between her fingers.

"...It's nothing, don't worry about it." Mabel muttered, ducking her head from his view when he made an attempt to look her in the eyes.

Sighing, he pulled her away from his chest, just enough for her to look up at him. Bill could see the hesitance of her movements, her eyes looking anywhere but at him.

"Mabel, look at me." Using her name seemed to do the trick, her eyes snapped to him.

Tears sat in the corners of her eyes, the brown that was usually so bright and lively was now dark and gloomy. Her teeth were busy worrying her bottom lip, going over it hard enough to draw specks of blood, but she didn't seem to notice. Pulling her lip from her teeth with his finger softly, he watched how her eyes fluttered shut for a moment, her tense body going limp. It didn't last long, however, the door was swung open, light from the hallway spilling into the room and blinding the two occupants as someone strolled right inside. Mabel made a sound at the back of her throat, growing stiff as the person's loud laughter filled the room.

"Well isn't this just a touching sight! Good ol' Bill making his lady friend feel all better. It's so cute I think I'm gonna cry." Tad wiped a fake tear from his eye, a large grin plastered on his face.

"Strange, what are you doing here?" Bill hissed, holding an arm out in front of Mabel.

"I'm just here for a little visit, coming back to pay my respects to this wonderful little lady here, she helped me a whole deal, right Buttercup?" Tad winked, looking past Bill's arm to Mabel who was huddled behind him.

Mabel lets out a small squeak, jumping backwards as Bill turns to face her. His eyes are scrunched up, confusion swimming in their murky depths. Mabel avoided eye contact, ducking her head down as he asks her what he meant, hurt hidden behind his calm front. Mabel doesn't respond, flinching when Bill placed a hand on her cheek. He tilts her head up, forcing her to meet his eyes as he repeats his question.

"What does he mean, you helped him?" He can feel anger building in his chest, but he waits for her to answer.

"H-he said he needed help with something, I didn't know what was happening until it was too late for me to back out...he performed a ritual, using my blood as a key ingredient. I don't know what it was, but I remember waking up in a bedroom." Mabel looks away, losing herself to the memory of that frightening encounter.

"Yup, Buttercup here helped me to form a physical form, it feels great by the way, wish you could feel this too." Tad cackles, stretching his arm above his head to wiggle his fingers in the air.

Bill was seething. Underneath a layer of anger, he could feel betrayal and hurt, that Mabel would willingly help him, that she went there of her own accord, but right now he was mad at Tad. He was mad at him for using Mabel's kindhearted nature for his own gain, but Bill knew he had no right to be mad, that's what he did, using Mabel's heart against her to get at her family. Bill stood up calmly, barely acknowledging the small squeak coming out of Mabel's mouth as he roughly pulled away from her. He cast Tad a glare, walking past him and into the hallway.

Mabel watched as Bill left the room, leaving her and Tad alone. She bristled, giving Tad a glare as he walked closer, plopping down on the side of the bed next to her. He said nothing, staring at the wall as they sat in a tense silence.

"You know, you don't have to stay here with him, he's not worth the time or the effort. Bill doesn't grasp human emotion, he wasn't born with a kind heart. He wasn't born with one at all actually. You could come back with me, I'll treat you better, make you feel welcome." Tad glanced back at Mabel, watching her as she listened to him calmly.

"I can't leave him, we made a deal. I traded myself to save my family. I couldn't leave him alone, I'm not sure if he'd go back on his word. I know he takes deals seriously, but what if someone broke their side of the deal first? He's a wild card and I can't risk my family's safety for my own." Mabel closed her eyes, thinking about Dipper's warm smile, her uncles warm hugs and all of her friends she's made over the summer, she couldn't endanger them for her own safety, that's far too selfish, even for her.

"He's not all that bad though, he has a soft spot for me, or he used to at least. I remember him taking me to Sweater Town for a picnic, and us watching movies together. He lets me sleep in his bed and he's good company when I get lonely. Bill might be a bit rough around the edges, but he's my friend, I don't leave friends behind." Mabel grinned, jumping out of the bed and speeding out the door, giving Tad a wave as the door slammed behind her.

"Atta girl, go get him." Tad frowned, watching her as she went.

Mabel sped past doors, glancing at them as she tracked to the room he would most likely be in. Thinking back to previous conversations with Bill she recalled what he said his favorite room was. Making a beeline to the observatory, growing anxious as the door grew closer and closer, she could feel her heartbeat speed up. With the door growing ever so closer, a whole new wave of anxiety washed over her. She had no idea what she was going to say to him. What could she say, when Bill was mad, he was a force to reckoned with. Mabel had seen Bill mad countless times, some of which were towards her, but she had never seen him hurt before. She didn't even know where to begin with comforting him, he was a demon for crying out loud, they were so different.

Standing in front of the door, her feet stuck to the floor, she felt nervous. Bill and herself were so different, how could she make this work? Closing her eyes, she thought of all the things her and Bill went through. From the first time she laid eyes on him to the present. Bill had been there for her, keeping her company in her dreams and through the day, to keeping her company in their Dreamscape. Steeling her resolve, she pushed the door open, taking notice of the being huddled on the ground. Bill was lying there, his triangular being flickering in and out of sight.

"Bill! Oh my goodness, what's happening?!" Mabel scrambled to his side, watching as his one eye shot to hers.

Mabel was certain there would be a grimace on his face if he had a mouth still, but all she saw was his one large eye, gazing up at her as he flickered in and out. He didn't say a word, simply watching her until he was gone, his being no longer in the mindscape. Mabel couldn't grasp what had just happened, not until Tad came wandering into the room to see her huddled on the ground in a corner.

"Oh geez Buttercup, what happened in here?" Tad spoke softly, rushing over to Mabel's side to make sure she was alright.

She wasn't, but she wasn't going to tell Tad that. She simply nodded, rolling her eyes as Tad extended his hand down to help her up. She took it despite the slight annoyance and thanked him nonetheless. Tad seemed pleased with her, giving her a lopsided grin as he hauled her to her feet, holding her hand a second longer than necessary, something that Mabel was acutely aware of. Pulling her hand out of his, she brushed the awkward gesture off as her own imagination. Relaying what happened to Bill, she found out that he was simply being summoned.

"But who would summon him? It's not like anyone outside of Gravity Falls knows him, and the townsfolk wouldn't be stupid enough to do that again." Mabel pondered, scratching at her chin as she thought this over.

"Well what about your family? Aren't they still trying to find a way to break you of the deal you and Bill made?" Tad asked, waving his hand around in the air nonchalantly.

"What? They are? I thought I told them to leave it be, I can't protect them if they just try to reverse what I did for them." Mabel pouted, crossing her arms over her chest in anger.

"Well if it's any consolation, deals don't normally take too long, Bill should be back any time now." Tad pointed out, taking hold of Mabel's hand again and pulling her out of the observatory. "Now let's go find a better place to talk, that room is starting to get stuffy."

Mabel followed behind Tad, glancing back into the room before the door shut behind them both. Seeing nothing but the night sky and all of its stars before it was blocked from her vision. Tad led them down the hallway of doors, seemingly lost but somehow managing to pick the kitchen out of all of them. He let go of her hand after a rather long pause as they stood in the middle of the kitchen, much to Mabel's pleasure. She placed herself in a stool by the bar, pulling an apple out of the rather small fruit bowl placed atop the clean counter. Taking a bite from the red fruit she watched as Tad looked around the room, his eyes shining with glee.

"I haven't been able to cook something for awhile, do you want something?" Tad asked, spinning around to face her.

Mabel waved her hand, dismissing the eager beaver to let him do as he wished. Tad's grin only grew and within seconds the kitchen was a complete mess as he laid out materials to make a pie.

"I really enjoy apple pie, I make the best dang pie you've ever tasted." Tad spoke proudly, puffing his chest out slightly.

Mabel couldn't help the giggle that slipped past her lips. He was dressed in a flour covered apron for crying out loud, and boasting about his cooking skills? Priceless. Tad seemed pleased once more, giving her another grin before he focused on his task. Leaving the dough to rise a bit before he rolled it out, he plopped himself on the stool next to her, reaching for an apple to eat as well. They munched on their apples in silence, the sound of the apples being torn apart the only sound in the kitchen.

"You said Bill should be back by now right? So where is he? Do you think my family has him stuck somewhere?" Mabel muttered, placing her apple on the counter, her appetite gone.

"Bill and stuck shouldn't even be in the same sentence, that demon is one slippery guy. Even if he was stuck he would be able to find his way out of the situation with ease." Tad griped, playing off Mabel's concern.

No matter how many times she asked, she just couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right. Bill was careful, but that didn't mean he was incapable of getting into trouble, in fact he seemed to do that rather frequently. Maybe he liked trouble, it certainly seemed to like him.

"Is there a way that I can just check on him? Maybe if I see him and know he's alright I can relax." Mabel pulled on Tad's arm, flashing him with puppy dog eyes.

"Fine, but don't say I told you so when you see he's alright." Tad shrugged, snapping his fingers.

A mirror popped in out of nowhere, landing in his hands. Tad muttered something Mabel couldn't catch and suddenly, an image of Bill appeared, he seemed to be stuck in some kind of metal chamber, her uncle Ford and brother standing on the opposite side of the glass. Bill seemed a bit tired, but nonetheless still in tact. Mabel felt her heart flutter as Ford flicked a switch, the chamber whirring to life. Bill let out a loud cry of pain, his one eye opened wide as he screamed to the heavens. Mabel nearly fell to the ground, her heart squeezed to bursting.

"Tad, there has to be a way I can help him, I can't just sit here and watch this." Mabel pleaded, tears in her eyes as Bill's cries only grew in volume.

Tad simply nodded his head, snapping his fingers and Mabel was traveling through dimensions back to her own. Appearing within the blink of an eye, she found herself on the side with Bill. The sudden amount of energy that was pushing against her left her breathless, falling to the floor almost immediately after she arrived.

"S-Shooting S-Star...wh-what are you d-doing here…?" Bill muttered weakly, his eye catching hers as the machine died, the power being cut.

"Trying to help you, you think I'd just sit back and watch you being crushed by my family? Well you've got another thing coming mister." Mabel stood up on aching feet, her legs wobbly underneath her weight.

Hobbling over to Bill, she pulled him up to her, holding him against her chest, willing Tad to pull them back before Dipper could open the chamber. Just as the glass door opened, they were gone, back to the mindscape with Tad crouching down to help them. Mabel felt wiped out, but Bill looked far worse. His normally bright yellow glow was dulled to a pale tan. His eye was glassy and unfocused, if Mabel didn't hear the slight whisper of him muttering she would've thought he was dead or whatever demons were when they weren't alive.

"Bill? Can you hear me? Does anything hurt?" Mabel muttered, brushing her cheek against his side, hearing how his mutters picked up but fell when she pulled away.

"Mabel, do that again." Tad spoke up, noticing the way Bill responded to her touches.

Mabel glanced at Tad, her eyebrow raised, but did as he asked. Rubbing her cheek against Bill's side once more, she took notice of the way he grew a bit louder. Placing her forehead against the top part of his eye, she planted a kiss below it, pulling back when his yellow skin pulsed. Kissing him again, his color slowly returned. His eye seemed to regain its focus and lost its glassy film.

Tad was at a loss, never had he seen a demon so close to death, yet come back from it because of a kiss from a human. Bill certainly seemed surprised, his one eye opened wide as he stared up at the pair of watery brown ones in front of his own. Mabel wrapped her arms around Bill's triangular form, for once not finding his points as painful as they were in the past. She did, however, grow more comfortable when Bill's form shifted back to his human shape, his own arms wrapping around Mabel's in return. Bill buried his face into Mabel's neck muttering a string of thank yous to her as they held each other. Tad watched with a heavy heart, slinking back out of the room when the atmosphere grew too intense for his own liking.

"You, Shooting Star, are the best meatsack I've ever come to know." Bill grinned, placing a kiss on her lips.

"I know." Mabel giggled, responding to the soft kiss, leaning into his hold even more than before.

They pulled away not too soon after, Bill still far too tired to continue any further. Mabel helped him to his feet, holding him steady as he swayed in his spot. Swinging his arm over her shoulder, she helped him walk as she took them back to his bedroom, Tad no longer with them. Mabel carefully lays Bill down on the bed, watching as he falls asleep almost instantly. Mabel smiles slightly, tired herself, but not willing to lay down to sleep. She had her own business to take care of and a certain someone could help her with that said business. She knew asking Bill would make him a little sceptical about her and she didn't want to risk him not trusting her again.

Walking out of the bedroom and back down the halls, she tried to remember what door led to Tad's mindscape, trying a few before coming out victorious. Slinking through the door, she walked head first to him, the impact of their bodies colliding sending Mabel to the ground.

"Whoa there Buttercup, what's the rush?" Tad chuckled, helping her to her feet.

"Do you think you can send me back to my dimension, I need to talk to my family for a moment." Mabel asked, straightforward and to the point.

"Well...it's a bit dangerous jumping through dimensions on your own, but I guess I can do this one thing for you." Tad complied, snapping his fingers.

Now that Mabel wasn't overcome with worry, she could actually focus on the way her body seemed to slip through time and space. Her being seemed to feel like water, slipping through cracks in concrete or through dirt. When she finally got to her own dimension inside the shack, she felt as if she would faint. The entire experience was a bit wonky. Standing on the warped with age hardwood floor, she felt a sense of nostalgia wash over her. Mabel couldn't help a glance around the shack, seeing the shelves in the front still stocked with cheap looking memorabilia. Swallowing sadness, she turned away from the front, stalking into the room with her head held high. There in the kitchen sat Ford, Stan, and Dipper. They seemed to be discussing something amongst each other, all being far too quiet for her to hear all the way across the room.

Mabel cleared her throat, gaining the three's attention. Their heads snapped towards her, their eyes going wide as they took notice of her standing in the doorway. Before Mabel could udder a word, Dipper rushed forward, arms spread outward to hug her. Instead of him meeting her, he rushed right through, falling to the floor below her feet.

"Mabel, what?" Dipper asked, looking up to his sister.

"I'm not really here dummy, Bill would be so upset if I came back. I just came here to tell you guys to step off. There's no way to break this deal and because of your stunt you pulled, Bill is having to rest to regain energy. What was that machine even supposed to do?" Mabel placed her hands on her hips, glaring at Ford as he stepped forward.

"Mabel, sweetie, why are you defending that monster? He must've tricked you into trusting him, that's got to be it." Ford asked, rubbing at his chin.

'No Grunkle Ford, Bill hasn't tricked me into anything, he's been nothing but kind and respectful. You know, for a "monster", he sure has been acting more humane than you guys." Mabel grumbled, using air quotes around the word monster.

"Mabel, how on Earth could you say that a demon such as himself could ever be more humane than that of your family?" Ford questioned, raising an eyebrow as he watched Mabel's face flush red in anger.

"How?! Well let me see...oh yeah! You guys summoned him only to lock him in a death trap! You still haven't answered my question, what was that supposed to to?!" Mabel fumed, stomping her foot on the ground.

"That machine was a prototype, it was supposed to limit his power in our dimension so we could attempt to talk to him without fear of him trying anything." Ford explained with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Well I can tell you one thing, it certainly sapped his energy, he nearly died." Mabel grew quieter towards the end of her sentence, her eyes falling from Ford's to look at the ground.

"Oh God, Mabel please tell me you haven't grown attached to Bill, he's not even human." Ford worried, stepping forward once again, closer to her and Dipper who has yet to get up from the floor.

"So what if I like Bill? It's not like anything could happen there, he's immortal for crying out loud. I'll die way before he does." Mabel grumbled, still not meeting her grunkle's eye.

"Mabel listen to me, Bill can't comprehend human emotions like we can. Even if he has a liking towards you, it won't be love." Ford reasoned, holding his hand out towards her. "Instead of staying with him, you could come back to us, find a real person and live your life out with them instead."

"...No. I don't want to leave Bill behind for some person I don't even know, what if I never find that special someone? I have someone already waiting for me and I really must be going, thank you for explaining to me what that thing did, but really, don't try to help me. Bill isn't the bad guy here." Mabel said, giving Ford and her brother a look before she was gone, leaving her family alone once more.

"What even?" Dipper spoke up, standing up from the ground.

"We need to get Mabel back, Bill obviously has her under a curse or something. There is no way she would willingly fall for him." Ford spoke, earning a doubtful glance from Stan.

"If I know Mabel, I'd say she has actually gotten in good with that yellow cornchip. She tends to see the best in bad people, even if there isn't any worth seeing. I'd say let's trust her judgement and see what happens." Stan replies, earning glares from the other two in the room.

"No offence Grunkle Stan, but I'm not comfortable leaving Mabel in the hands of a dream demon, there has to be a way we can get to her without her noticing we are still trying. If she sees that we are, it'll only make her upset." Dipper brushed his pants off, coming to stand by Ford.

"You two are really going to disobey Mabel's warning, well count me out. Mabel said not to help her, she's fine. I miss her, but running around like chickens with their heads cut off isn't going to help her." Stan fussed, waving a hand over his shoulder as he walks out of the kitchen and into the livingroom.

Bill knew he was sleeping, he knew so well that this couldn't be real. There was no way Mabel would be dressed like that. She was running around in a rather adorable bathing suit, the material being a pale pink with a star in the center. The one piece ended with a ruffled skirt, resting just above mid thigh, showing off a bit of toned leg. Not seeing her in sweaters messed with Bill's head, her normally baggy clothing hiding any curves from view, but now in her bathing suit, it left little to the imagination.

Mabel ran around in the sand, her waist length hair swept up into a high ponytail that rested at about mid back, the ends curled like her normal hair. She disregarded her headbands and let her bangs fall over her forehead and eye, hiding a bit of her face behind a curtain of brown locks. A large smile plastered on her face as she kicked sand up and splashed in water near the shoreline, chasing after birds and playing with shells she found on the ground. Bill sat underneath an umbrella, watching as she enjoyed herself to the fullest.

"Bill, come and play with me!" Mabel called to him, holding her hair out of her eyes.

"I don't know, you look like you're having plenty of fun by yourself." Bill called back, watching as she pouted before marching over to him.

"Please." Mabel begged, flashing him with her puppy eyes.

Bill ground his teeth together, a wave of longing rushing through him. He coughed a bit, attempting to cover up his sudden wave of emotions.

"Well, since you asked so nicely, I guess it can't be helped." Bill complied, standing up from his little beach chair.

Mabel squealed in glee, grabbing onto his hand to pull him into the sand. She sat him down on the ground by a shovel and a pail, filling it with sand.

"We are going to make the coolest sand castle this world has ever seen!" Mabel cheered, placing the pail upside down on the ground.

Tapping the bottom of it softly, she pulled it off, only for the sand to collapse to the ground.

"Aww, it didn't work." Mabel frowned, trying again only for it to repeat what happened.

"Here let me." Bill pulled the pail out of her hands, their fingers brushing against one another's for a split moment.

Bill ignored the way her touch send shivers down his spine, instead he snapped his fingers. Sand from the ground moved around, forming a large castle in front of them. The fortress was large enough for the two to step inside the front door and sit down in the sand.

"Woah, Bill! How did you do that?" Mabel asked, looking him in the eyes.

Bill felt a blush spread across his cheeks, his face warming. He cleared his throat again, looking away from Mabel's bright brown eyes. Her gaze was piercing, Bill felt as if she was looking to his very core, it drove him crazy.

"It's a secret, Star. If I told you, anyone would be able to do it." Bill attempted to play off his embarrassment, with little success.

"Well if you say so." Mabel responded simply, her eyes roaming down from his face to his clothed chest. "Hey Bill, we're at the beach, why are you wearing a shirt?"

"Wha-?" Bill was interrupted by Mabel jumping forward her hand wrapping around the hem of his shirt.

She gave a hard tug upward, almost ripping the fabric from his body. The shirt slid upwards with ease, sliding off of him and into Mabel's hands. Giggling, she pulled his shirt down over herself, covering almost half of her body.

"You wear really big shirts Bill." Mabel laughed, standing up and spinning in circles.

 ***WARNING***

Bill didn't respond, too busy watching the way his shirt rose a bit as she lifted her arms in the air, showing a bit of her thigh that her bathing suit covered. Turning his head away from her, he stared at the wall, trying to ignore the high pitched giggles coming from her mouth. He almost fell backwards when her face came into his view, hers so close to his that they were almost touching.

Her nose brushed against his. He could feel her breathing against his lips, making him lick them instinctively. Mabel's gaze followed his tongue as it left a warm, wet trail in its wake. Bill couldn't help himself, he pushed his lips to hers, groaning in pleasure as Mabel responded eagerly to his kiss. Bill pulled Mabel against him, sitting her on his lap. Mabel moaned into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck as he held her tightly. Bill tilted her head back, licking at her lips. Mabel opened her mouth her tongue coming out to meet with his. Pushing Mabel down to the ground, he hovered over top of her, placing his weight on his arms to hold himself up from off of her.

"Bill…" Mabel moaned again, breaking from a their kiss.

Bill ground into her, pulling a groan from him and another illicit moan from her. Mabel pulled his head down to lead him into a kiss. Bill gladly returned her kiss, meeting her pace in stride.

 ***WARNING OVER***

"Bill...Bill...Bill!" Mabel spoke through each kiss, until he realised that he was being shaken.

Bill jolted awake, his one eye peering right into Mabel's. Groaning as he sat up, he felt his muscles bunch together. Mabel pulled back, a small frown on her face as she watched Bill's choppy movements.

"How are you feeling?" Mabel asks pensively, holding a hand to his shoulder to still him as he swayed.

"Like a truck ran me over, other than that I feel fine." Bill responds, rubbing the back of his head with his hand.

Bill smiles at Mabel's giggle, pulling his hand away from his head to turn towards her.

"Mabel listen, I'm sorry for getting upset with you for helping Tad. I know you didn't want to help him like that, it makes me mad to think that he forced you to do it, but I can't change what he did." Bill said seriously, pulling Mabel's hand from his shoulder to hold it in his own.

A small blush grew on her face, her fingers playing with his idly as she stared at him. Bill offered her a small smile, the flush on her face growing a bit brighter.

"What's got you so flustered Shooting Star?" Bill teased, patting her on the head.

"You, ya big jerk. You go and get yourself hurt and then you go right back to teasing me, at least let me get you something to make you feel better." Mabel pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Oh Star, I already feel great, you're here to nurse me back to health." Bill purred, smirking as Mabel's blush came back full force.

"Yeah yeah you big dorito, come on, let's get you something to eat." Mabel grumbled, pulling him out of the room.

Bill followed behind her, watching as she sped down the halls in embarrassment. She was cute when she was mad.


	8. Chapter 8

Mabel knew what she was doing was a poor idea, Bill was still fast asleep in bed, tired from yesterday's events. She just couldn't sit still any longer. Worming her way out of Bill's arms, she managed to creep out the door without waking the sleeping demon. Giving him one last look, a small smile on her face at just how peaceful he was when sleeping, she shut the door behind her. Trying to think back to which door she saw him disappear behind more often than not, making her stay somewhere so she wouldn't follow, but she did anyway. Stopping at one door that stood out from the rest, she peeked into it, opening it wide when she took notice of the many computers that showed all of Gravity Falls on them.

She stepped inside, closing the door behind her to make sure when Bill woke, he wouldn't think she came inside. Taking a step closer, her eyes rolling over the cameras recording everything. Many of them were just watching from streetlights in what she could guess, but then again, Mabel was certain there were no streetlights inside the Mystery Shack. Although it showed most of Gravity Falls, there were more surveillance inside the Shack than anywhere else. They were seemingly placed in random spots, a few up front in the main lobby where the merchandise was sold, but behind the door that led into the house was practically lit up with them. For each room in the house, there were two cameras in each room, except the attic where her and Dipper slept. There was nothing in there, at least she couldn't see anything playing back what was happening up there.

Mabel's eyes fell down to one of the screens, the basement in the Shack. She could see her brother, working on that machine that broke awhile back, her grunkles behind a window going over some notes written poorly in a notebook. Frowning, she zoomed in on Dipper, he seemed so tired, so unlike his normal self that Mabel couldn't help but feel bad for him. She would have never guessed that her decision would be that difficult for her family to grasp. She felt cheated if she was being honest. If they had made a deal with Bill to keep their family safe, they wouldn't want their family to bring them back, that defeats the whole purpose for making this deal!

"Darn it you guys, stop trying to unravel everything I'm doing for you!" Mabel fumed, tapping her foot on the ground repeatedly.

Mabel relaxed, the steady rhythm she was making keeping her from lashing out. She found herself doing this more often now that she was with Bill, tapping her fingers on the counter in the kitchen, clicking her pen repeatedly when they were in the study, patterns helped her relax. Breathing out a sigh of relief, she turned her focus back on her family, now that she looked, she could tell all of them were tired, deep circles under their eyes from lack of sleep. Mabel watched curiously as Dipper called out to Ford, earning a nod from the man. He trotted back behind the window, shut the door and locked it as they cranked a key on the console in front of them.

The machine whirred to life, sputtering for a moment before the swirl of the blue portal solidified.

' _They did it?'_ Mabel thought to herself, watching as they opened the door for a moment, tossing something inside of it and waiting.

Mabel found herself waiting too, seeing as the object was practically swallowed by the blue window. Suddenly before she could blink, something hit her in the head. It didn't hurt but it definitely tore her attention away from the cameras. Looking down at her feet she took notice of the ball of tape that hit her in the head. Her eyes widening, she looked back at the cameras, seeing how their faces remained ones of hope. She looked back at the small portal it came out of, the blue still in the air, brightening up the room a bit. Tossing back the ball, she watched as it flew through the portal and out the other side.

Dipper's eyes widened when the ball came flying back through the portal, hitting him against the chest. He looked over to Ford, seeing how the man seemed to be interested with the outcome.

"Dipper, I'm about to try something crazy, make sure you hold onto this rope and get Stanley out here to help you." Ford said to Dipper, handing him the rope to hold.

Dipper motioned for Stan to come out and help him, letting Ford get close to the portal before it clicked. He was going to look inside.

"Grunkle Ford wait! What if that wasn't Mabel?" Dipper,asked, worried.

Ford only gave him a smile, sticking his head through the portal. Mabel watched as his head disappeared and reappeared in front of her. Ford watched as she let out a squeal. It worked, there was no stopping them now. Well Mabel could try at least.

"Grunkle Ford, you guys need to stop trying to help me, I just want to help protect you and you trying to save me isn't letting me do what I need to." Mabel told him, watching how he opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by the door flying open.

Mabel froze as Bill's eye landed on her, it narrowing into a slit as he took notice of the man with his head sticking out of the portal.

"Well, if it isn't Sixer! Good to see ya pal! Ya see, I've got a bit of a problem on my hands and I'm sure you would be the one to help me. If I ever see you back here again, especially around Mabel, I will personally rip your tongue out and feed it to you." Bill's chipper voice lost its charm as he threatened Ford.

Mabel flinched when Bill roughly grabbed her wrist, yanking her out the room before the door slammed in her face and locked behind her. She banged on the door, trying to get Bill to listen to her, but he didn't bother. She could hear Bill talking from behind the door, but couldn't make out what he was saying.

"I'm warning you Pines, you come near what's mine again and I will make the rest of your life a living nightmare. That goes for everyone out there, make sure you tell the others!" Bill cackled, pushing Ford's head back through the portal before he could get another word in.

He watched as the three went flying back, landing against the wall behind them with a thud. He knew that they weren't hurt, but he wished they were. He was getting too comfortable around Mabel that he nearly forgot about their progress. Growling deep in his throat, he spun around, ripping the doors off its hinges and nearly scaring Mabel half to death.

"What are you doing, Shooting Star?" Bill hissed, advancing on the girl.

"N-nothing out of the ordinary, Bill! I was just t-trying to tell you that I told Ford to stop trying to help me." Mabel muttered weakly, turning away from the heated stare she was getting from him.

"Are you sure you weren't about to go through that portal and back to your shit family? I thought you were smarter than that Star." Bill shook his head, grabbing Mabel roughly around the neck.

He slammed her up against the wall, watching with crazed glee as her eyes widened in fear and her mouth opened to suck in air he was blocking her from. Back in his mind, he knew he was going to regret this, but now he couldn't care less. He came so close to losing his toy just a moment ago and that opened his eyes just a bit. He couldn't baby her any longer, he needed to focus on her damn family to make sure they wouldn't come in here and take her away. He wasn't letting her go now that he had her right where he wanted her.

"Oh Star, you don't know what you do to me. Make me go out of my way to ensure that you never leave my side. I've lost track of how many deals I've had to ignore just to spend time with you. Don't you see, I'm doing this out of the goodness of my heart!" Bill droned on and on about how nice he was and how forgiving he was being with her, but Mabel couldn't focus on what he was saying.

Gasping for air, she clawed at his hand around her neck, hoping to pry off the tight grip he had on her. This only made the grip tighter, crushing off what little oxygen she was able to pull from the air around them. Bill stopped talking, bending at the waist to look her in the eye. Mabel froze at the pure hatred burning in his golden eye. Not once while she was here did she receive such a look from him, it made her chest ache more than her lungs did. Watching as he scoffed, he dropped her to the ground unceremoniously. Turning on his heel, he left her there coughing for air.

Mabel watched his retreating back with something akin to rage, wanting to get up and scream in his face about how much of a jerk he was being. Knowing that wouldn't have the positive effect on him like she wished it would, she simply got up and brushed a hand over her neck softly. Feeling the light indents beginning to bruise she sighed, letting her hand fall back down to her side. Giving the hallway a fleeting glance, she slipped into the bathroom and locked the door behind her.

Giving herself a glare in the mirror, her gaze burning into the reflection shining back. Mabel's normally sunkissed skin was a pale color, the dark bruise sticking out like a sore thumb against the light contrast of her skin. Her normally fluffy hair hung around her shoulders lifeless, no volume behind the curls that laid down against her back. Her eyes held light purple bags underneath, giving her the appearance of an old hermit. Frowning, she rubbed at her face, hoping the gleam of oil coating her skin would disappear, but that didn't happen.

Turning to the shower, she pulled back the curtain that hid the tub from view. Placed on the ceramic ring was shampoos and body washes, most of them being a light fragrance compared to Mabel's normal sugary mess that sat at the Shack. Turning the water on, she stepped inside, shedding from her dirty clothes and stepping under the warm water. Sinking into the warmth of the shower, she felt just how dirty she was. Squirting some body wash into her hand, she lathered the soap onto her skin, grimacing when she saw some dirt wash away and down the drain. Getting her hair wet, she put some shampoo into the clumped locks of her hair, flinching when her hand caught ahold of knots when she ran her hands through it. Finally untangling her hair, she managed to scrub out dirt and grime that had collected.

Fetching a towel that was hanging up, she dried herself off, scrubbing at her hair to help dry it faster, to no avail. Letting it hang down her back, she wrapped the towel around her to keep her dressed while she washed her clothes she had now, getting ready to wear them once more. Throwing them into the washer, she turned it on and watched for a moment as they spun around in the watery soap that mixed with it. She turned to the door, cracking it open to peek through incase Bill was wandering about. Seeing as the hallway was empty, she slipped out of the bathroom and into the kitchen, feeling a bit peckish. Rubbing at her slightly sore neck, she opened the fridge, holding a hand against the towel in case it undid itself while she was out of the bathroom.

Hearing a cough from the table, she spun on her heel, watching with wide eyes as Tad chuckled from behind a hand.

"Well, if it isn't little ol' Mabel, how you been sweetheart? Bill treating you right? Judging by the bruise on your neck I think he's been a bad boy." Tad smirked, watching as Mabel's hand brushed up against the spot on her neck subconsciously.

"Oh don't worry about me darlin', I'm not planning on doing anything this time, just came by to chat for a bit, do you mind?" Tad motioned to the chair next to him, pushing it out from underneath the table for her to sit down.

Mabel accepted the chair wordlessly, sitting ramrod straight in the chair, obviously uncomfortable in Tad's presence. He didn't seem to mind however, for as soon as she sat down, he was scooting closer to her to whisper in her ear.

"So what's up with that purple mark around your neck? Did he get too rough playing with you?" Tad hissed, dragging a finger down her neck, watching as she shivered when his finger brushed down her wound.

"N-no, he didn't 'play' rough with me." Mabel answered curtly, staring straight ahead as Tad continued to rub his finger against her neck.

"Ya know, if you were with me, you wouldn't have that hideous bruise on your neck. I'd treat you like the queen I know you are, you'd be lathered in so much affection from me you'd be sick." Tad cooed, watching as Mabel shivered once more as his breath ghosted against her cheek.

Leaning in to place a swift kiss upon her lips caught her by surprise. Mabel squeaked into Tad's mouth, giving him the leeway he was looking for. Catching her tongue in a dance, he watched as Mabel's eyes fluttered closed, losing herself to the emotions behind the kiss. Tad smiled into it, feeling Mabel hesitantly respond, her hands coming to wrap around his neck and rest in his hair.

' _Oh if Bill saw this, he'd surely have my head.'_ Tad cackled, pressing his lips against hers more firmly as she tilted her head to the side a bit.

Breaking from her lips, he looked down at her flushed face and glazed eyes. Her lips were still parted and damp from their saliva, begging for him to give in and surrender himself to their softness. Turning his head away from the alluring sight of her frazzled appearance, he managed to wrestle his emotions back into the corner, a smug smirk playing along his lips as Mabel sighed audibly.

The door to the kitchen slammed open, a furious Bill storming his way inside. Taking notice of the dazed look on Mabel's face and the smug smirk playing on Tad's, as well as the hold Mabel had on his neck and the current towel that was barely hiding her from view only served to tick him off further. With a shout, Bill charged Tad, his body flushing a deep red as his hands caught fire. Tackling Tad to the ground, he barely cast Mabel a concerned look when he heard her muffled squeal as she was sent toppling down too.

Glaring into Tad's calm eyes, Bill could feel his ire practically explode. With a snap of his fingers, Bill had Tad screaming in pain. Mabel watched as each of Tad's teeth came floating out of his mouth, dancing around Bill's outstretched index finger. The grin on Bill's face chilled Mabel to the bone. As if Bill had read her mind, he spun on her, the grin still plastered to his lips. With another snap, he had Mabel constrained in a chair, wagging his finger in the air like a mother would a child as she squirmed in her binds.

"Ah ah ah, children who don't listen need to be taught a lesson. Now. Quit. Struggling." Bill amplified his words with a smack to her cheeks, watching as they reddened from the abuse.

Mabel watched as Bill's eye left her body, the towel nearly slipping down her chest as she squirmed, but she could hardly worry about that now when she was trying to free herself. She wished she had just jumped in with Ford, if she had she wouldn't be in this mess. Yeah her family would probably pay the price, but they would do anything for her she was sure of that. Crying out when she felt the binds practically dig into her skin, she wiggled in a poor attempt at freeing herself, only causing the towel to slip off her shoulders and pool down around her waist.

The cold air kissed her still damp skin, raising goosebumps all along her arms and chest. Bill was too distracted putting Tad's teeth back into his gums to notice, something Mabel was grateful for as she tried to manipulate her body in a way that would hide her from their view. Her struggling only seemed to drag the towel further down her body, completely slipping from her and to the floor. The sound of her groaning in annoyance had pulled Bill's attention back to her, his eye widening momentarily before narrowing in on her.

"I swear Shooting Star, if you planned for this to happen I will end you." Bill growled, stalking towards her as she attempted to hide herself further.

Bill placed a hand on her shoulder, stilling her as he gazed into her eyes. His one was suddenly more clear than it had been in hours, the emotion behind his glazed eyes searing her heart. Bill reached down to pluck the towel off the ground, covering her body with the cloth and releasing her so she could cover herself.

"Go off and get your clothes, I have to deal with the garbage, come back here when you're dressed however, I need to talk with you." Bill gave her a kiss on the forehead, something Mabel found pleasing before she scampered off down the hallway and back into the bathroom to fetch her clothes that should be done by now.

Bill turned back to the body lying on the floor when he heard the door close behind him. Letting out a puff of air he was holding in, he felt himself visibly relax. Seeing Mabel in such a vulnerable position, basically open to his wishes had affected him in a way he wasn't expecting. He thought he had that wrangled into a deep corner in his mind, there was no way he would bend to his desires like he so desperately wanted to, Mabel was far too young, too innocent for him to even grow close to, let alone taint with his impurities. It was a sin for him to kiss and hug her let alone yearn for her.

Ignoring the way his heart was pounding, Bill turned on Tad, watching as the man wearily lifted his head to look up at him.

"Oh come on Bill, you have such a sweet little thing all to yourself, do you honestly expect for me to just leave that alone?" Tad asked, rolling his shoulder around to make sure he didn't break anything from the force of being slammed on the ground.

"You and I both know Mabel is far too young for any kind of relationship, I shouldn't even be keeping her here, it's not good for either of us." Bill retorted, watching as Tad scoffed.

"Oh please, you and I both know you could let her go back to her family if you really felt that way, you don't want her to leave you and you know it. You're as bad as I am and there's no way to cover that up, it's written all across your face." Tad griped, pushing himself off the floor and kneeling to keep his head from spinning.

Bill didn't respond, simply watching as Tad stood and nodded to him, making his exit as he walked out the door with a wave. Bill stayed where he was, a frown on his face as he thought over what Tad had told him. Bill knew he was being selfish, he was keeping Mabel from living her life. He shouldn't keep her here with him, he wouldn't be able to hold on for much longer, the more he was around her the more he lost track of himself. He was afraid to lose control around her and let his true emotions show for her. He didn't think she would be able to handle what he wanted to throw at her, he knew she wouldn't be able to.

Groaning, he turned around and walked out the door, determined to sleep off the headache that was beginning to form behind his eyes from the stress that today had put on his shoulders. Giving the bathroom a knock, he waited for an answer from behind the door as Mabel poked her head out from behind it, her eyes lighting up when she saw him.

"Bill, I'll be out in a minute, my clothes are almost done drying." Mabel giggled, watching as Bill rolled his eyes a bit.

"I was just saying I was off to take a nap, if you wish to join me, meet me in the bedroom." Bill gave her another kiss to her forehead, chuckling when he felt her face warm from the contact.

She nodded her head and slammed the door closed, her cheeks flaming red as he stalked off and down the hallway, into the bedroom to wait for her to come out.

Mabel fished her clothes out of the dryer, throwing them on quickly and rushing out of the bathroom to get back to Bill. Opening the door that led to their room, she spotted Bill already lying on the bed, his suit jacket and hat taken off and placed on a chair not too far away. He had his dress shirt still on, but the sleeves were rolled up and the first few buttons unbuttoned. His dress shoes were laying on the floor as were his socks, he was still wearing his slacks from what Mabel could tell.

Shimmying into the bed, she situated herself in the crook of Bill's arm, smiling softly when his arm wrapped around her and rested on her waist. She felt the fingers that danced on her hip and heard the way his breath stuttered when she turned towards him. His eye dropped to her neck, taking in the damage he had caused earlier.

"Don't worry about it Bill, I know that you didn't mean it." Mabel muttered, covering it with her hand.

"No, I have to worry about it. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. I trust you to make the right decisions when it comes to stuff like that, I should've told you sooner. Your family has been trying to find a way to get you back for months, that's all they've done since you've been gone." Bill spoke, holding Mabel tighter to him as she began to whine.

"I knew they wouldn't want to give up, why did I think they'd just carry on with their lives like it's normal? Dipper is a crazy son of a gun and when Ford and Stan get mixed into it, he's a force to be reckoned with. There has to be a way to stop them." Mabel grumbled, snuggling further into Bill's chest when she felt the events of the day wearing down on her, it wasn't even four o'clock and she was tired.

"Hush, we'll discuss this later, first we should get some sleep, I'm exhausted." Bill coaxed Mabel to lie down, letting her get comfortable as he pulled her with him.

The light snores that followed her as she laid her head down had him smiling. He looked at the sleeping girl lying next to him, the smile disappearing from his face as he thought over that same thing Tad told him earlier. He knew Tad was right, Bill shouldn't be getting involved with Mabel, she wasn't good for him and he wasn't good for her. Mabel was mortal, she would grow old and die before Bill even blinked. He was eons old, she was only a little more than a decade old, it was far too creepy. To be lusting for a teen her age was almost blasphemous.

Ignoring the way his conscience told him to stop while he still could, he couldn't pull away from her. He had grown far too attached, even if he needed to he wouldn't be able to back out of their relationship now, he didn't want to. What does he care that he's eons older, he's not even human!

' _Now that I think about it, not being human almost makes it worse...damn it, why can't I find a way for this to work?'_ Bill lamented, pulling Mabel as close as physically possible before burying his face into her neck and breathing in her sweet scent.

Finding some peace from the storm in his head, Bill was able to let go of his fears for the time being and fall into a restless slumber.


	9. Chapter 9

Mabel knew her relationship wasn't exactly healthy. Bill's temper seemed to get her into troublesome situations, whether it was from the demon himself or his not so polite company that always seemed to be over. She knew all this, yet she still found herself drawn to him. The way he looked at her, all the raw emotions shining in his eye, she was hooked. It didn't matter to her that he was the reason she woke up in a sweat from an unknown nightmare that faded as she jerked awake, it didn't matter to her that she ended up with some form of a bruise or bump from spending too much time with him, it didn't matter that he had dragged her away from the only life she had ever known, Bill had completely taken over her life and she couldn't care less.

Lying next to him at night was her favorite past time. She had her chance to look at him without the stress of the day making him violent. She could watch as his chest rose and fell with each breath he took and how his eye fluttered every now and then as he shifted slightly to get more comfortable. Mabel knew what she had with him was unhealthy and possibly immoral, but she couldn't find it in herself to care.

Playing with a lock of his hair, she grew curious as to what was under his eyepatch. She had never seen beneath it, maybe there was just skin, not even an eye socket where the eye was supposed to be. With all the stealth of a fox, she managed to lift the eyepatch from off from his face, her eyes widening when she saw just what was underneath. There was another eye, well more like where the eye was supposed to be. It was like looking into the bottomless pit out front of the Shack at home, there was nothing in there except for darkness, but if she looked closely, Mabel could see the faint glow of something she couldn't understand.

"What are you doing Star?" A gravely voice disrupted her from her thoughts.

"Oh! Uhh...I was curious…?" Mabel muttered, bashful at being caught.

"Well if you wanted to look all you had to do was ask." Bill laughed, reaching up to grab at his eyepatch once more.

He placed it over the hole, his remaining eye never leaving her as he fastened the knot in the back so it wouldn't slip off.

"What happened?" Mabel blurted out before she could stop herself.

"Heh, nothing happened. I just never had a second eye. You wanna see something neat though?" Bill asked, waggling his eyebrows in hopes to make Mabel more curious.

"But of course, show me the money." Mabel giggled, watching as Bill pushed his eyepatch up from his eye, revealing his eye socket underneath.

"Now make me mad." He said simply, watching as Mabel's mouth fell open in surprise.

"You _want_ me to make you mad? Are you nuts?" Mabel asked, gaping at the nod she received in response. "Well alright. Tad kissed me."

"He what!?" Bill screeched, "Mabel when I said make me mad I meant pinch me or something, not tell me he kissed you!"

Mabel watched transfixed as the glow in his socket only grew brighter, filling the entire hole with a red light. The entire left side of his face was shrouded in the frightening shade, making Mabel shiver despite the fact that she was oddly amazed by it.

"You're joking right? He didn't actually do that to you, did he? Oh Gods, I knew from the way he was looking at you yesterday that he must've done something, but kissing you? I'll kill him." Bill fumed, turning to slide his patch back over his eye.

"No Bill don't! I want to watch what's happening!" Mabel grabbed his hand, watching as the light in his eye died down just a little from the contact.

"What are you talking about? You want to see my eye? But you see it all the time!" Bill groaned, rubbing the side of his face.

"Your socket is like a bright red right now, I didn't know you could do that." Mabel awed, placing a hand overtop Bill's cheek.

"I'm not trying to, my power does that for me." Bill flushed, enjoying the small contact of her hand on his skin.

Ignoring the way his heart began to pound and his chest began to tighten, he pulled her hand away, fighting back the urge to kiss her lips as she pouted.

"If you keep that up, those lips will be doing more than just pouting." Bill groaned, the obvious innuendo slipping over Mabel's head easily.

"If you wanted to kiss me Bill, all you had to do was ask." Mabel repeated Bill's words from earlier, earning a small chuckle in response.

"You little minx, teasing me like this." Bill tutted, wagging a finger in Mabel's face teasingly. "But if it's a kiss you want, it's a kiss you'll get."

Bill captured Mabel's lips the second those words spilled from his mouth, enjoying the way Mabel seemed to practically melt against him. The pur coming deep within her chest had him groaning in vigor. Behind his closed eyelid, fireworks erupted. Not once did he expect such harsh retaliation from the small brunette in his arms. Mabel pulled away from his lips, pushing against Bill's shoulders roughly and shoving him down underneath her as she crushed her body against his, eager for more contact from him. Bill was caught off guard from the sudden attack, barely able to stabilize Mable above him before she crushed her lips back to his.

Mabel's head swam, her heart pounding loudly in her ears as she felt Bill's chest vibrate as a deep growl sounded out. Mabel squeaked as Bill grabbed her arm, pulling her underneath him as he crouched over her, switching their positions within the blink of an eye. Bill's knee landed against Mabel's core, brushing against the underwear she had washed the prior day. Mabel saw stars, the friction from Bill's knee feeling better than anything she had ever done in her life, even candies didn't compare to the feeling in her abdomen.

Breaking away from Bill's mouth, Mabel moaned out softly, gaining the attention of the being above her.

"Oh? What's this?" Bill purred, brushing his knee against her once more, pulling a more needy moan from her.

Mabel grabbed a hold of Bill's upper arm, gripping tightly as he ground his knee into Mabel, watching as the yellow of his eye flickered for a moment, turning a dark red momentarily before it shown yellow once more. Mabel never took her eyes off of Bill's watching in fascination as his eye flickered more frequently the longer they kept it up.

"Dear Gods Star, you're going to be the death of me." Bill hissed through clenched teeth, drawing in raspy breaths as he attempted to wrangle his emotions back in.

"Wh-what are you d-doing to me?" Mabel asked, watching with wide eyes as Bill slipped his hand down to where his knee was placed, replacing his knee with his fingers.

If Mabel was enjoying what he was doing earlier than she was absolutely adoring what he was doing now. The slight tightness that was slowly building in her stomach suddenly erupted, burning her body with the sheer force of an orgasm, something she had never experienced.

Bill had never seen something so magnificent, so breathtaking as what he was seeing unfold in front of him. The way Mabel's eyes widened even further, her mouth falling open in a silent scream, her back bowing off the bed, all of it was more than Bill had ever dreamt of. The soft moans that slipped from her lips made Bill all the more aggressive. Before Mabel could blink, Bill had crushed her to him, grinding his hips into hers with force. Mabel tensed up, feeling something warm and hard pressing into her.

"B-Bill? Wha-Ahh!" Mabel shrieked, flinching when Bill gripped her legs tightly, prying them apart as he settled in between them.

"Bill! Wait!" Mabel shouted, pushing against Bill's face as he brushed his nose against her neck.

"I can't Mabel, if you don't want what's coming next you need to leave." Bill ground out, barely restraining himself when Mabel slipped out from underneath him and out the door before he could blink.

Clenching his fist, he turned to look at himself in the mirror, frowning when he saw how his hair was ruffled up. What he didn't expect to see was the way his eye flickered from its normal yellow hue to a deep red over and over. Controlling his breathing, he calmed himself down enough, watching how his eye stopped flickering, resting on its normal yellow color. Frowning, he stood up out of bed, rolling his shoulders to remove tension that had grown from the night before. Hearing his shoulder popping multiple times had him groaning in relief, the slight pain it brought on making him chuckle.

' _I guess I should go and check on Star, I rushed her out pretty quickly…'_ Snapping his fingers, he redressed himself in his clothes, sliding on his natural smirk as he strolled out the door, only to stop in his tracks as he saw Mabel standing in front of him.

The blush on her face, the way her eyes darted around him to stare at the ground had a blush of his own spreading across his face. He wasn't sure why she seemed so...passive now of all times, but he found himself drawn to the look on her face. The bashful look as she looked anywhere but him, the way she fiddled with the hem of her sweater and especially the way she bit her bottom lip, rolling the small mound of flesh between her metal covered teeth.

"Star, you don't stop with the lip biting and the bashfulness and we'll just end up back in that room all over again." Bill ground out, his eyes nearly rolling back into his head when that only made her even more fidgety.

"It's not my fault you big trash bag, you're the one who was doing all that stuff, making me feel things I haven't felt before." Mabel panted, her eyes hesitantly looking up to see the heated look lingering in Bill's gold colored eye.

From the way they were standing, Mabel could see herself in the glassy overcoat, standing with her arms placed protectively in front of herself, the bright blush on her cheeks, the way her swollen lips were stained red from their abuse. She hardly recognized the sultry girl staring back at her, everything about her reflection screamed maturity and Mabel was certain that wasn't her.

"While I'm deeply pleased that I was the only one to treat you that way, right now that's not what I want to hear. I wanted to see if you were up for a bit of trickery." Bill hinted, raising an eyebrow when Mabel only stared back at him in response. "Ya know, messing with a certain group of people to keep their noses out of where they don't belong?"

"You mean sabotage my family's work they've put months into to help me?" Mabel asked bluntly, watching with a small smirk as Bill flinched a bit at the harsh comment.

"Well if you have to put it that way Shooting Star, then yes. They are getting far too close to finishing the portal, in fact they should be done with it by the end of the week, we need to do something before they manage to get here. I know that warning I told Sixer isn't going to stop them from trying to get you out of here." Bill rambled, flailing his arms about in a random fashion.

"I won't directly help you destroy the machine if that was your plan, I could never do that to them, I will only assist in anything other than that." Mabel clarified, holding her hands to her hips when Bill opened his mouth to protest. "No Bill, I won't be helping you break it, that's the end of that."

"Fine, you can stand watch out incase they come back, we can't let them finish this machine, no matter what. If they do that will be the end of me, literally and figuratively." Bill joked, earning a stoic glare from Mabel. "Sorry, sorry, sore spot apparently."

With a sigh from Mabel and a chuckle from Bill, the two were off on their mission to rid the world of that cursed machine that would be the end of the demon she had grown fond of. It wasn't that she didn't want to go home, she wanted that more than anything, but if it meant her leaving behind Bill, she wouldn't do it. Over the course of two and a half months or so, she had learned that Bill wasn't as bad as her grunkle Ford tried to portray him as. Yes he had done bad things in his life, but that doesn't define him as a bad guy, he has a right to turn his life around and her stuck in the mud family wouldn't be able to see past his transgressions and notice the kindheartedness he holds inside him. Mabel knew that his front he puts up is more for a show than anything.

"Star, now's not the time to be deep in thought, I need you to keep watch outside to make sure that no one comes down here, the second you see someone coming I want you to tell me, alright?" Mabel rolled her eyes, but otherwise agreed to his plans, going to stand outside the room where the portal was located.

Letting her eyes roam around the room, she let herself get lost in thought, something Bill would be mad about later, but she didn't care right now. She was so close to the family she had been pulled away from and here she was, not doing anything about it. She was standing guard to keep away from them, something she would've never thought she'd find herself doing, not in this lifetime. She used to be so close to her brother and grunkles, but now she wasn't too sure. She still loved them deeply, don't get her wrong, it's just that she knew that she was to blame. She made that stupid deal that started Weirdmaggedon, she made the deal to keep her family safe, she made them so upset and angry with her that she wasn't sure she'd be able to face them after this.

However, it seems that life wasn't giving her an option. Just as she was beginning to pull herself from her thoughts, she heard the sound of the elevator whirring to life. Jumping in surprise when the ding from the bell sounded out, she rushed to the open door, signalling Bill that her family was back. Before she could get a good look at the portal, Bill snapped his fingers, sending them back to the dreamscape with seconds to spare as the elevator door slid open, revealing Dipper and Ford with two plates of food in their hands. Mabel heard the shouts from both of them as they saw the mess that was the portal, as well as Ford's curses that he threw at Bill as she watched them from the surveillance room.

"Bill, do you think they'll be mad at me? Do you think they'll hate me?" Mabel muttered, her eyes not meeting his as she stared at the distraught faces of her family.

"Gods no, if anything, this will only make them hate me more, they wouldn't be able to hate you no matter what you did." Bill cooed, pulling Mabel into a side hug.

The two stayed like that for awhile, listening to the way Ford rushed about in a poor attempt to save the portal they spent forever making. Mabel could hear bits of their conversation, most of which was Ford shouting at Stan and Dipper to stop being lazy and help him fix it. Something caught her ear though, something she never thought she'd hear in her lifetime.

"I can't do this anymore, he'll never let us finish the portal, Mabel's gone." The defeated voice of her twin brother echoed throughout the silent room, chilling her bones and freezing her blood.

"Don't say that Dipper! We-we can do this! We just...we just gotta keep with it kid! Mabel'll be back with us before you can blink!" Stan tried to cheer Dipper up, but that only seemed to make him more upset.

"I am blinking Stan, Mabel's still not here. Face it, there's no way we can help her, not with him watching over us like we're caged mice." Dipper growled, covering his eyes with his hands. "What's the use when we won't get anywhere?"

"Dipper, this is your sister we are talking about. We can't just give up because some mishap happened. We just nee-!" Ford was cut off by Dipper whirling around to poke him in the chest.

"I know she's my sister, Ford! I grew up with her, she was my best friend and I would do anything for her, but I can't do anything now. Bill has our hands tied, he won't let us finish the portal and he won't make a deal with us, what else are we supposed to do? I'm not going to throw my life away for something we can never finish! Mabel's gone, there's nothing we can do anymore, face the facts Ford, your niece is gone, my sister's gone." Dipper ranted, his chest heaving with his breath as he attempted to real his emotions back into check.

The three men fell silent, Ford and Stan just staring at Dipper in shock as he spun on his heel and into the elevator.

"I'll see you guys at dinner, I'll be up in my room." Dipper offered them a half hearted wave as the metal doors slid closed and pulled him back above ground.

Mabel was numb. In all her life she didn't think Dipper would let anything hold him back. He wanted to become a dumb nerdy science freak and he was well on his way. He wanted to prove to Wendy that he wasn't just a little kid and by God was that not working, but he was trying. He'd promise to keep her safe and he was doing such a good job, until she pulled any chance of that from him. She ruined his life, she was the cause of all his pain and strife. How could his own sister do something so cruel to him? She didn't deserve the Pines name, she tainted it with her own selfishness. Her family was all about teamwork and sacrifice and all she'd done was take and take and take. Celestabellabethabell was right, she wasn't pure of heart, she was worse than the demon she was still held in a hug by.

Pulling from Bill harshly, she turned around quickly before he could see the tears that poured from her eyes. She heard him ask what was wrong, but all she offered him was a shake of her head as she pulled open the door and left, tears still slipping down her cheeks and onto her brightly colored sweater, darkening the color to a dull shade of pink.

Stumbling into an unfamiliar room, she laid down on the bed in there. The room was as bland as it got, the only pieces of furniture being a dresser and the bed she was lying on. Burying her face into the pillow, she sucked in air harshly, fighting back the cries that slipped from her mouth and out into the quiet room. Wishing she had some yarn and knitting needles, she was grateful that Bill's mindscape was easy to provide. Granted the yarn was colorless, she was glad that she could do something to distract herself with. Keeping her hands busy was an easy way to keep her mind from wandering. Focusing on each stitch, she made a gray and black pattern, grinning at the stripes she knit into the sweater. Despite no color, she was pleased with how her artwork was turning out.

Hours into her current sweater and she had almost forgotten about her mental breakdown earlier. She knew in the back of her mind that she would have to face the very thing she pushed down, but right now she was content with repeating the stitch over and over, the familiar pattern calming her fried nerves. She wasn't sure what time it was when she finished the sweater, but she wasn't yet tired. Pulling her pink one off, she slipped the new one on, finding that the gray contrasted nicely with her tanned skin.

Creeping over to the door, she cracked it open, peering through the crevasse to see if Bill was still up and about. All she heard was silence and blackness. Frowning, she pulled the door open further, yet the silence and inky darkness hung in the air just outside the door. Sticking her hand out, she flinched when she was met with the blackness. It didn't hurt, but it was freezing cold to the touch. Pulling her hand back was harder than she thought it would be. The blackness threatened to pull her in, slowing climbing up her arm the longer her hand was in it. Tugging on her arm with all her might, she heard a snap and suddenly, she was flung backwards.

A sharp pain in her arm distracted her from the blackness that spilt into the bedroom. Skipping the assessment of her arm, she shook off the pain and instead turned to the real problem at hand. Mabel was certain she was dreaming right now, but she couldn't will away the nightmare and that sent her into a blind panic. Forgetting momentarily that this was nearly improbable, she crawled away from the ink as it slithered towards her along the ground. Backing herself into a corner, she felt her fear flare up as the substance licked across her ankle, sending shivers coursing down her spine. The ink only seemed to grow faster, the blackness slithering further up her leg and covering the entire half of her body.

Mabel was certain she had never felt so cold in her life. Her entire body threatened to shut down as soon as the cold black brushed against her chest. Mabel couldn't feel her legs and feet anymore, her arms and chest were soon to come after. The only thing the blackness didn't spread to was her right eye. She could still see clearly through it even as it covered the rest of her. As soon as she was submerged, the cold died off, leaving her oddly numb despite the chill still deep in her bones. Mabel couldn't move, she couldn't breath, she couldn't blink, her mind was blank as she stared ahead at nothing in particular. The blackness was not as dark as she had once thought. There was a soft glow inside it, almost as if there was a light source coming from somewhere that she couldn't see.

Mabel was certain she could hear something ticking, yet felt that time was no longer moving. Maybe this is what Bill felt, he didn't perceive time like normal humans, he said that time was irrelevant to him because he wasn't constrained to it like she was. At the moment, she felt ageless, as if time didn't affect her at all, but that passed all too soon. She felt time flowing around her, she could tell things were changing, but she wasn't being affected by it. Time didn't bother her here and for that she was almost grateful.

Waking up with a gasp, she sat up in the bed, the sweater she had made still pulled over her shoulders. Shaking off the strange dream, she crawled out of bed, not registering just how cold the room was. Mabel walked to the door, the same sense of dread that she had felt earlier washing over her once more. Pulling the door open, she was grateful to see the whiteness of the walls around her. Stepping out of the room and shutting the door behind her, she made her way to the kitchen, stepping inside to prepare breakfast for herself and Bill, who should be waking up momentarily.

As if on cue, Bill strolled into the kitchen, giving Mabel a small lopsided smirk as he sat himself at the small table in the corner of the room. Mabel acknowledged his presence but made no effort to greet him yet, it was far too early for her and she was still a bit shook up about her dream. Bill noticed the strange aura she was putting off. She seemed on edge and tense, her muscles pulled taut and her hand gripping onto the spatula tighter than necessary. Getting up from his chair, he made his way over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder gently. Reeling back in surprise when she spun around, holding the spatula out in front of her for defence.

"Woah there Shooting Star, don't wanna go brandishing a cooking utensil at a demon, I might take that as a challenge." Bill chuckled, the coldness of her skin lingering in his fingers longer than he thought it would.

Mabel cleared her throat, lowering the spatula to let it rest at her side. She wasn't sure what came over her. Bill hadn't done anything to freak her out. The sudden flash of anger that had built up in her chest the moment his hand touched her freaked her out. It was a burning flame that grew in intensity when she spun around to defend herself from someone she didn't need to. The fire inside her chest burned out when she saw the shocked look on his face, the way his eyes widened momentarily and he froze in place.

"You alright there, Star? You seem tense." Bill worried, reaching forward to place his hand back on her shoulder.

Her skin met with his hand and she had to hold back the shiver that his hands brought forth. They felt feverish against her skin, the heat sinking into her arm and boiling her blood beneath it.

"Jeez Star, you're freezing. You aren't getting sick on me are you?" Bill asked, placing a hand against her forehead, frowning when her skin temperature still felt like ice.

"Well you don't look sick, you're just really cold. Come here for a moment." Bill pulled her into a hug, trying to warm her up with his heat.

Mabel stood still, her arms hanging limply at her sides as Bill crushed her to his chest.

"About yesterday, don't let what Pine Tree said get to you, he's just upset that the portal was messed up, he'll come back around and help fix that thing again in no time. He wouldn't give up on you like that." Bill whispered against her hair, his mouth moving up and down as he spoke.

"I know, I just can't believe he'd give up that easily. I mean he'd never done that before, why give up with something so important?" Mabel responded, the fright of her dream slipping into the back of her mind as the warmth from Bill slowly transferred into her.

"Who knows? Your brother is definitely one of the more complex humans, they overthink things and make things more complicated than they actually are." Bill chuckled, nudging her head with his cheek as he pulled away. "Don't let what he said get you down, he will come around, I'm sure of it."

"Yeah, you're probably right. He wouldn't give up that easily." Mabel agreed, tilting her head up to look at Bill.

Bill bent down to place a kiss on her lips, grinning when she responded wholeheartedly.

She knew this was wrong. She shouldn't be feeling these things for her captor, but when he made it so hard to hate him, she knew that she was helpless to stop him.


	10. Chapter 10

Mabel barely slept that night, her dreams plagued by inky blackness and that same glow from the night prior. The chill in her bones lingered around with her once she woke, if Bill noticed, he didn't comment on her chilled skin or her rigid posture. She had bags under her eyes and her skin was losing its color, something he knew wasn't common amongst humans unless they were sick. She didn't seem to be ill though and he couldn't quite figure out what was wrong with her. She wouldn't tell him what was ailing her and it wasn't like he could force the answers out of her.

He had been a bit more careful with her, making sure to speak to her in a soft tone as to not scare her off or frighten her any further than she was. Her dreams plagued her every second of every waking day. Bill felt like he was treading on thin ice with her, anything he said could set her off and he would receive the cold shoulder from her the rest of the day. When they retired to bed, she disappeared and left him alone to sleep.

"Hey...uhh...Star? You wanna...I don't know, talk about what's wrong?" Bill asked absentmindedly one day.

The harsh glare he received was definitely warning enough to keep him from asking again. He watched as she withered away right before his eyes. She rarely came out of her room, when she did he could see just how malnourished she was and her skin was a sickly white.

It had been a few days since he had seen his only companion and he was beyond worried for her. Barging into her room she normally kept locked he noticed the fallen form lying just beyond the door. He fell to his knees in front of her, running a hand down the side of his face nervously. Hesitantly reaching out to shake her shoulder, he heard a muffled groan from the girl, but nothing else. His face flushing red in anger, he pulled his hand back and flashed to the basement in the Pines house. Seeing Ford and Stan jump at his sudden presence made him the smallest bit happier.

"If you don't tell me where Pine Tree is right now, I swear to all of the non-existent Gods out there that I will end your miserable existence right now." Bill's anger flared as Ford moved to hold a gun to his head.

"I won't give you anything Cipher, you took Mabel from us!" Ford yelled back, pushing the gun further onto Bill's temple as he spin to face him.

"Yes I get that, and if you don't tell me where the little fucker is, Mabel is going to waste away to nothing and I won't be able to do a thing about it!" Bill's voice wavered at the end, his anger dying out as his desperation to save his Shooting Star grew. "Please, she's all I have. I'm sorry for all I've done to you Sixer, I wish things could have ended differently between you and I, maybe I wouldn't have to run from you guys and Mabel could be happy with her twin instead of slowly dying because of her grief."

Ford's surprise on his face almost made Bill wish he hadn't said all he did, but he was hoping it would get the point across and pull the gun away from his head. Ford pulled the gun from his head, placing it on the table as he eyed him.

"What happened to my Pumpkin'?" Stan spoke up, catching Bill's attention as he looked in his direction.

"Pine Tree giving up on trying to save her made her feel like she was shit. Not only that she's been having some God awful dreams. I think being in my mindscape is taking its toll on her." Bill mused, looking over to Ford. "Please tell me where Pine Tree is, I need to borrow him for a moment."

"...He's upstairs in his room, be cautious though, I'm not sure how he will react to seeing you." Stan answers for Ford, seeing as how he was still hesitant to even look at him.

Bill was gone within a heartbeat, up the stairs and into the once shared room of the twins. Dipper was lying on his bed, a book laid overtop his face as his snores filled the room. Bill hauled Dipper onto his shoulder, flashing back into Mabel's room before Dipper could even wake up. Tossing him onto the ground before Dipper could get a good swing in his direction he landed next to his sister.

"Oh God, Mabel! What happened!?" Dipper turned Mabel onto her side, her dull brown eyes gazing past him and into nothingness.

"What did you do to her?!" Dipper turned to Bill, his hands clenched at his sides.

"Don't blame me for this! You just had to go and give up on your blood, your sister!" Bill shouted back, his lips cast down in a frown.

"What's the use when you won't let us get any further? You'll just set us back once we get close to getting her back." Dipper glanced down at his sister who was lying on the ground, her eyes staring up at him and into his soul.

"...Bill...Please, help me…" Mabel's soft voice interrupts the two's bickering.

Bill knelt back down in front of Mabel, pulling her up until she was resting in his lap.

"I'm here Star, I'm right here." Bill whispered, nuzzling the side of her neck.

Dipper frowned, watching as Bill cuddled Mabel closer to his chest. Mabel's loud cries dwindled down into soft whimpers.

"How am I supposed to help her when you won't let us close?" Dipper asked, frowning when Bill made no move to answer him.

"I'll crack a deal with ya kid, if I'm allowed to visit her whenever I please, I'll let you take her home. You can't interfere with us when I'm there and if I catch wind of you planning something with your God awful uncles to take her away from me, I will not hesitate to take her back with me. I hold the power here and I will not put up with any funny business, so do we have a deal?" Bill turned his head, holding one arm out to Dipper, his hand lit in blue flames.

"What are you getting out of this?" Dipper questioned with the tilt of his head.

"I still get to see my Star and she stays healthy and happy with being around her family, it's a win win." Bill simply stated, "Now do we have a deal?"

Dipper stared at the outstretched hand in front of him, going over every possible loophole in this deal. Dipper didn't believe for just one second that Bill would let Mabel go just like that, especially after all the work he's done to keep her with him. Then again, with this deal, him and his grunkles wouldn't be able to lay a hand on him when he was around, and even then he wasn't specific when he would be. The more he thought about it the more he realized that this deal was made out in Bill's favor.

"I'll agree to these terms as long as you promise not to cause any trouble while you're around. If word gets out that you're back and still kicking, the entire town would be up our butts to get rid of you." Bill's eye narrowed into slits, a frown marring his features as he thought over the details.

"You think I would risk my Star's happiness to torment that dumb town of your's? Gods you must be even stupider than I thought. If I harmed a single hair on anyone's heads, she'd ignore me like the plague and that is worse than that damn hellhole of your Grunkle's head. Fine, we have a deal." Bill shook hands with Dipper, a small smile on the young boy's face.

Bill stood up, towering over Dipper easily. With Mabel in his arms, he flashed into the Mystery Shack, Dipper right in front of him.

"Bill! If you don't hand Mabel over right this instant-!" Ford was cut off as Bill waved a hand, silencing him.

"Slow your rolls, old timer. Ya see, I think I recall a certain someone making a deal with me not too long ago. You're stuck with me now, whether you like it or not. Shooting Star is mine and I plan to keep her by my side and thanks to Pine Tree, he made it easier than ever before!" Bill cackled, his eye staring directly into Ford's as he leaned down and sealed a kiss over Mabel's lips.

"You evil son of a bitch! What do you want with Mabel anyway?!" Stan growled, raising a fist in the air threateningly.

"Oh Star here has already given me what I want, she is mine, mine to me and no one in this family can change that. When you all are long gone, she'll still be by my side, forever my bright Star in the sky." Bill hugged Mabel closer to him, her smaller form fitting easily in his arms.

"Why would someone like yourself be interested in a human anyway? What could having her around help with?" Ford asked, standing next to Dipper with a hand on his shoulder.

"She's good company, contrary to belief, someone like myself can get lonely." Was Bill's simple response.

With no more words to share, he took Mabel upstairs and into the twin's shared room. Placing her down in her bed, he brushed her bangs from her forehead, smiling down at her as she leaned into his touch. Placing a kiss against her lips, he left the room and made his way to the kitchen, ignoring the three that trailed after him. Easily finding Stan's alcohol stash, he poured himself a glass of rum. Swirling the liquid in the glass, he took a sip, relishing in the burn as the liquor raced down his throat.

"Hey! Hands off the merchandise!" Stan griped, swiping the bottle from the demon's hands before he could pour himself another glass.

"That wasn't very nice." Bill mocked, watching as Stan crossed his arms in defiance.

"You're not very nice." Stan challenged, his brow furrowed in anger as he stared Bill down.

The demon caved, holding his hands up in surrender.

"Are you just going to bum off us forever?" Ford asked him, one eyebrow quirked in question.

"No, I can't stand to be around you three all the time, I'd go sane. No one wants that." Bill gave the small group a grin before flashing out of the kitchen and back into his dreamscape.

Dipper glanced back at where Bill once stood before turning and hightailing it back up to his and Mabel's room. Letting out a nervous sigh once he saw Mabel sleeping silently in bed, he crawled into his own and let his eyes close.

The next morning was chaos. When Mabel woke, she woke with a horrified scream. Her skin was drenched in sweat and her eyes were bloodshot. She had deep purple bags under her eyes from lack of sleep and her hair was matted down in oils. Dipper had to splash her with water to wake her up fully. Seeing her shaking wet form made his heart heavy. Carefully picking up his sister, he took her to the bathroom to let her get cleaned up. Hearing her muffled thanks he walked away from the door, heading down to the kitchen to whip up some breakfast before Stan could.

Mabel followed the scent of bacon all the way down to the kitchen, smiling at her brother who danced to his music that was playing out of the small speakers placed on the counter. Taking a seat at the table, she waited until he was finished cooking to greet him. The smile she got from her brother made her realize just how much she missed him. While the two ate, their grunkles putzed around, standing idly by until the twins were finished with their meal. The foursome made their way out of the shack and into town to pick up some supplies. Mabel broke off from her family to run by the crafts store to pick up some yarn, her head already filled with ideas. Picking out a wide arrangement of colors, she bought them before meeting back up with the three at Lazy Susan's diner.

Sitting at the table with her family made her realize just how much she missed all of this. She found herself enjoying the way Stan teased Dipper over something trivial that happened a few days ago, apparently he and Pacifica were on speaking terms. If Mabel had anything to say by it he seemed to be crushing hard for the blonde. Mabel bit back a snarky remark, wanting to commemorate this moment without spoiling it for her brother.

The mood was ruined by a certain dream demon popping in to say hello. Dipper and Stan stopped arguing and Ford seemed to grow even more uptight. Mabel was the only one to actually welcome the presence of the demon.

"Bill, you'll never guess what I'm planning to do!" Mabel spoke up, her eyes lighting up in glee.

"Oh? And what is that Star?" Bill teased with the quirk of his lip.

"I saw this beautiful yarn at the craft store and I wanna make you a sweater!" Mabel laughed at the upturn of Bill's lips.

"I'd like that Mabel, you're very fashionable ya know." Bill winked, although to everyone he just blinked.

Mabel smiled at him, enjoying the light air of their conversation. Her mood was ruined when she looked at her brother, his eyes cast downward at his clenched hands. Mabel caught on to just how everyone felt about the demon being there and it made her chest clench in sorrow.

' _Why can't they see what I see? Bill's not so bad once you get to know him!'_ Mabel grumbled under her breath, looking up to see Bill's smiling face, he apparently not catching onto the tense atmosphere amongst the group she was with.

"I'm gonna run ahead to the shack you guys, I need to get Bill's measurements for his sweater." Mabel dismissed herself, sliding out of her chair and linking arms with Bill as they sauntered out of the diner.

"You're not a very good liar Star, what's wrong? I thought you'd enjoy being back with your family." Bill asked as they walked away from the diner, out of range from anyone nearby.

"I love being back, I didn't realize just how much I missed this until I came back. It's just that everyone seems more on edge knowing that you're still tagging along with me." Mabel frowned, her brow creased in thought.

"Don't you fret about it, now about those measurements…" Bill chuckled, flashing them back to the shack.

Mabel spent the rest of her day measuring Bill and chatting with him as she planned out her design. She had to shoo Bill out of the room so she could hide it so that he wouldn't know what it was she had in store for him, but as soon as she had hidden it; she ushered him back inside.

The two carried on conversation with one another until late at night and her brother walked in the room to get some sleep. The room immediately lost it's calm feel. Dipper glared at Bill as soon as he entered the room, harrumphing as he fell onto his bed. Mabel watched as Bill stood up, brushing off his tail coat before he turned back to face her.

"This day has been delightful Star, but it seems that it has gotten rather late. I shall take my leave." Bill placed a kiss on the crown of her head before he was out of sight.

Mabel glanced over where Dipper was sitting, his face buried in a book. She almost rolled her eyes at the familiar sight.

"You know, you don't have to be so rude to him. He's nothing like you think he is." Mabel muttered, crossing her arms when Dipper sent her a halfhearted glare.

"He's a demon Mabel, an old one at that. I don't think you know what he's like. You're only a teen, he's like eons old. You've barely scratched the surface about Bill. What makes you so sure that he's not evil?" Dipper lowered his book, resting it in his lap as he stared at his sister.

Mabel fidgeted under her brother's stare, choking on words that refused to come out. Finding her reluctance as her answer, her brother went back to his book, no longer interested in the conversation that had occurred.

"He listens to me." Mabel blurted out before she could stop herself, realizing the dam had burst. "He listened to me when no one else would. You and Ford were always down in his lab and Stan never had time to talk to me. It gets old talking to a pig, it's not like Waddles understands me anyways. Bill though, he listened. He understands me like no one else does. You might be my brother Dipper, but you can't understand everything about me."

Dipper sat frozen on his bed, his book long forgotten as it fell to the floor with a light thump. Mabel cringed at the look on Dipper's face, deciding that it was a good idea to slip out of the room and head out for a small walk. Passing by the living room, she saw Stan passed out on his chair, a can of beer in his hands. Mabel passed by the soda machine on her way out the front door, a light blue glow emanating from underneath the cracks letting her know that Ford was down there working.

Glancing back after she was a ways away from the shack, she finally let herself breathe. The calming sounds of the trees rustling around her made her relax. Finding a small stump, she sat upon it. Looking up at the sky, she saw dozens of stars twinkling overhead. Reaching a hand upwards, she grabbed at the air, wishing desperately to go up there.

"You're so beautiful…"She whispered into the open air, her eyes glued to the thousands of stars overhead.

"Yes you are." Bill's voice interrupted her train of thought, startling her a bit.

"You flirt, I meant the stars!" Mabel giggled, her eyes still glued to the stars despite the pair of arms that wrapped around her middle.

"They pale in comparison to a star as bright as you." Bill purred into her ear, watching over her shoulder as her face flushed and her eyes shifted from the sky to his hands.

Mabel shifted ever so slightly in Bill's hold, a shiver shooting down her spine as Bill's hot breath brushed against her neck. Bill noticed this and found himself leaning down to place kisses along her neck. Mabel mewled in content, relaxing in Bill's hold as he pulled her closer.

The two spent the night underneath the stars, whispering sweet words to each other and sharing kiss after kiss. When Mabel woke, she found herself in her bed, tucked in gently with a warm feeling in her chest.


	11. Chapter 11

*****Warning*****

 **There are mentions of sex and other raunchy subjects later on in this chapter and further on in other ones, I skipped ahead a few years to further the storyline a little bit. If you don't want to you don't have to read those parts, it won't really affect the story all that much.**

 **Anyway back to the stuff you came for!**

Weeks went by quickly for the couple. Spending time with one another was fun, well once they got past the threats from Mabel's family about Bill treating her right and making sure she was home on time. They went out on dates, caused a bit of mischief, anything and everything in between.

Within the blink of an eye, months had past, years even. The two grew even more inseparable. Somewhere around her 18th birthday, the two had talked about moving into their own house and it didn't take them long for their dreams to become a reality. WIth Mabel making a steady supply of sweaters and dresses and selling them to people, they were able to save up enough for a rather quaint house in the middle of town. Saying goodbye to Stan and Ford was rather hard for the brunette, but she realized that she needed to move on with her life sooner or later. Dipper had already moved out into his own apartment with Pacifica a few months before they turned 18, the two were engaged and soon to be married. The older Pines twins were sad to see their great niece walk out of their house, but with promises to visit often, they were waving the two off as they drove down the road, a few pieces of furniture being brought with them.

With Mabel's 20th birthday fast approaching, Bill had no idea what he should get her. He thought about asking Pine Tree, but then he'd laugh about how they'd been together for years and he still didn't know what to get her. He was a dream demon, he knew all! He could find the perfect gift for his beloved.

"Hey Star, I'm gonna run out for a bit, need to go get something!" Bill shouted to his Star, watching as her head poked out from around the corner of the kitchen.

"Alright, but hurry back mister, dinner's almost ready!" She laughed, blowing him a kiss before ducking back into the kitchen, humming some song he didn't care to learn the name of.

Slipping out of the house, he strolled down the road, closing his eye as he meandered down the pathways. Gravity Falls had grown ever so slightly since the two were 12 year old children running around with the journals. More people lived in town, malls opened up and more restaurants popped out of nowhere. Bill always found it amusing how fast humans lived their life, but he guesses when there's little time to work with they had to rush things.

Thinking back to the ray of sunshine cooking at home, he was struck with a rather familiar thought. He had been thinking about it recently. She was growing fast, it seemed like days ago when he took her into the dreamscape. He didn't want to see how much longer it would take for her to fully mature and grow old, her skin growing frail and fragile and her hair turning gray. Humans were fickle things really, they lived for at most a good one hundred years or so and suddenly they were gone. Thinking about a future without Star, well it made him not wish for one at all.

Nearly bumping into someone, he shook himself out of his depressing thoughts, looking at all the window stores along the street in hopes of spotting something that he thinks she would like. Stopping in front of a jewelry store, a glimmer of light caught his eye. Turning his head to peer into the window, his eye landed on the most intricate object he had ever seen. A dazzling wedding ring sat on display in the window sill. The gold of the band contrasted perfectly with the rose tint to the jewel resting on the crown of the ring.

Opening the door, he slipped in and up to the counter, catching the eye of the worker behind the desk.

"Oh, what can I do for a young man like yourself?" A rather old man smiled at Bill, his wrinkly skin tanned from the sun.

"There's a ring in the window sill, gold band and a rose jewel placed in the center, I was wondering if I could get a closer look at it." Bill asked, motioning to the window with the ring in its display case.

"Of course." The man smiled at him once more before scurrying off to fetch the ring from the case. "Here you go."

Bill took the ring from the man's hands, holding it gently in his palm. Holding the ring up against the light, he watched as the jewel shimmered, sparkling almost as brightly as his Star does.

"That jewel in the center, a rose diamond, very expensive but makes for a perfect gift for that special lady in your life." The old man voiced, watching as Bill held the ring a moment longer before handing it back to the man.

"How much?" Bill asked, pulling out a small wallet he kept money in.

Walking out of the store with the ring case safely tucked away in his pocket, Bill made his way back to their house, hoping that dinner was ready for him to dig his claws into, metaphorically of course!

"Star, I'm back!" Bill called out, hearing a soft welcome home from her in the kitchen still.

"Dinner's just about done, can you help me set the table?" She called out to him, poking her head from around the wall again to see him kick his shoes off by the door.

"Anything for you beautiful. Let me go put my jacket up in the room first." Bill pecked her on the lips as he passed by, hearing a happy hum from her as he continued on his way upstairs.

Hiding the case in his dresser drawer, far away from the opening and tucked under absolutely every article of clothing he had in there, he placed his coat on the hook behind the door before making his way back down to the kitchen to help. Taking the two plates from Mabel's hands he set them down on the small table pushed to the side of the kitchen, its two chairs sitting on opposite sides of one another. Grabbing silverware to place down as well, he sat down just as Mabel placed a small pot onto the table.

"I made chicken soup. I know it's still summer and all, but fall's fast approaching and I thought it sounded scrumptious." She giggled, serving the two of them helpings of her soup before she dug in.

"You don't have to explain yourself to me Star, I don't need to eat remember?" Bill laughed at her frown.

"You don't want my food?" She pouted, raising the spoon to her lips to slurp on the warm liquid.

"Now I didn't say that, just because I don't need to eat doesn't mean I don't enjoy it." Bill picked up the spoon, sampling a bit of the hot broth. "Not too shabby."

Mabel laughed at this, going back to eating the soup as well. Small talk was shared between the two, laughs and jokes shared as they finished up with their dinner. Mabel packed away the leftovers in the fridge for lunch tomorrow before skipping off to shower, leaving Bill to rest in bed. He needed a shower too, he spent a large amount of time in town and it was hot out, he was sweaty. Hearing the bathroom door open, he gathered a towel and a change of clothes to slip into, but stopped in his tracks when Mabel strolled out naked and laid down in front of him.

He glanced down at her, watching as her smug grin only grew as his gaze shifted from her face to her chest. Growling at her audacity, he spun on his heel, rushing to shower before he did anything he'd regret. Mabel sighed from the bed, tugging a shirt on over her head but forgoing underwear, it's not like he hadn't seen everything already. Bill and her had experienced before with one another, never going as far as intercourse, neither were ready for any repercussions that could happen. The two weren't even sure what kind of offspring they'd produce, with Bill being a demon and all. He didn't want to risk Mabel's health with something like that yet, maybe if they learned more about it, but as of right now, they were content with what was happening.

Mabel would be lying if she said she didn't want to have sex with the demon. He was drop dead gorgeous. That guy made her heart race and her legs tremble and that was just from kissing him! Imagine what he could do with everything else. She was also looking forward to him popping the question, they had talked about it briefly one day and found out that they were both at least ready for that step in their relationship.

' _About damned time, he's kept me waiting for years!'_ Mabel grumbled, hearing the bathroom door swing open and an equally as naked Bill strolled out.

"You think you can tease a demon and get away with it Star? You must be kidding yourself." Bill chuckled darkly, watching as her legs shifted ever so slightly and he spotted that she had still forgone wearing underwear.

"You're testing me Star, don't make me punish you." Bill warned, glaring at Mabel halfheartedly.

"Oh don't be such a kidder! Get over here and give me some snuggles." Mabel smiled, holding her arms out to Bill.

The demon just rolled his eye, slinking over to the brunette cuddled up in the bed. He placed himself next to her, enveloping her into a hug, pulling her against his chest. Mabel sighed, closing her eyes against him.

"I like this." She whispered, wrapping her arms around his waist as she snuggled closer, he was always uncommonly warm.

"Yeah, you're right about that one." Bill chuckled, pressing his mouth to the crown of her head.

"Hey Bill?" Mabel asked, pulling her head away to look up at him.

"Hmm? What is it Star?" He inquired, looking down at the girl as she stared up at him.

"What are you going to do when I'm gone?" She spoke, her expression serious.

Bill fell silent. It was always something he had problems thinking about. He knew he wouldn't go back to his old ways, he had given that up long ago when he got into this relationship. Looking back down at the girl in his arms, he found himself at a loss. Never in his life did he not have a plan for the future. He wanted to conquer the multiverse, but meeting a certain Pines girl had him changing his mind.

"I don't know." Bill answered honestly, a sad smile on his face. "I look forward to each day I spend with you and I certainly don't want it to end, but I know there comes a time for everyone, maybe I'll dimension hop until I land somewhere interesting."

"I don't want you to be sad about it, okay?" Mabel told him, her eyes bright.

"That I can't promise. You mean everything to me Star, if you were to be ripped away from me suddenly there isn't much I can do besides sulk about it." Bill avoided her gaze, finding it hard to look her in the eye.

"Then I want you to live for me, do what I can't." She smiled, grabbing his hand and holding it against her cheek.

Bill fought back the sudden emotions that threatened to erupt from him. It brought tears to his eye, a lump in his chest forming at the words and actions she shared with him. Nodding his head in agreement, not trusting his own voice for he was sure it would break on him.

Mabel gave him one big smile, reaching over to turn of the bedside lamp that brightened the room. She sighed once she got comfortable in Bill's hold again, closing her eyes to let sleep claim her for the night. Bill spent a few more minutes just watching her restful face. Her eyes fluttered every now and then, the creases between her brow lessening from the stress of everyday life. She looked so happy at that moment and Bill couldn't help but commemorate this moment to memory. Closing his eye, he let himself slip into his dreamscape, the closest he can come to sleeping as he can get.

A few more weeks went by and Bill started carrying around the ring with him. He started taking Mabel on dates to find a perfect moment to ask her, but nothing felt right to him. He was certain she would say yes no matter the occasion, but he wanted to make it special. Humans took this thing seriously so he would too. Taking her out one night for a late picnic they laid underneath the stars like they did so many times, letting the sound of crickets chirping and the wind comfort them. Bill was suddenly struck with motivation.

Pulling Mabel up to stand, he watched as her face reflected confusion before he pulled out a small case and got down on one knee. Tears immediately filled her eyes and Bill couldn't help but smile at her as she covered her hands with her mouth to stop the squeal from slipping past her lips.

"Mabel Pines, you've been my everything since day one. I may not have been the kindest to you when we were younger, but my intentions with you were pure. I would go to the ends of the known universe for you and I know that you'd do the same if need be, so I was hoping you'd do me the honor and make me the happiest demon in all of existence." Bill gazed up at Mabel who was still fighting back tears, her hands still over her mouth.

"Y-you dummy, of c-course I would!" Mabel cried, launching herself at the demon crouched on the ground.

Holding onto the ring tightly, Bill managed to keep himself upright as Mabel cried into his shoulder.

"Ya know Star, I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be crying right now." Bill teased, pulling back to place the ring on her finger.

"Oh hush you, I'm crying out of happiness and you know that." Mabel sniffled, wiping at her eyes as she looked at the ring. "Bill it's beautiful, thank you."

"No, thank you Star for making me realize that what I was missing was right in front of me." Bill placed a kiss to her lips, humming in glee as she eagerly responded.

Enjoying each other's company for awhile longer, the two finally packed up the supplies, heading back to town to get some sleep. They had a lot of prepping to do if they were to have a wedding.

Mabel put herself in charge of preparing her wedding, getting the right place, cakes, decorations, coming up with a theme, finding her dress, she was jam packed with stressful duties that she had put upon herself unknowingly. Bill often found himself ducking out of the way for his angry fiancée to pass him by. She had become her own kind of demon, spitting fire whenever someone dared to interrupt her very important schedule.

They had set their wedding date to be on her birthday, surprisingly enough. Dipper didn't seem too fond of that idea, but sucked it up as Mabel cursed at him for trying to ruin her big day. Mabel had just about everything pieced together, rented a rather peaceful spot at the park, had some decorators come by to place out centerpieces on tables and string up lights and anything else Mabel thought would go well together. She had ordered a large five tier cake that was being delivered the day of the wedding and rented a wedding gown from a store in California.

Mabel was currently on the phone, shouting to whoever was on the other line. Bill assumed it was the gown rental company judging from the way she complained that her dress wouldn't be available in time for her wedding. Telling the operator on the end to fuck off and die, she hung up the phone with a groan, rubbing at the sides of her head. Bill hesitantly took a step towards her, watching as her eyes flashed open to glare up at him.

"Not now Bill, I'm trying to think of where I can get a wedding dress on such short notice. The wedding is in a week and there's no time to order one again!" Mabel cried, covering her face with her hands as she wept.

"Oh come on Star, you're the best clothes designer I know and you're very much capable of making your own dress. Now stop your sniveling and show me that smile." Bill wrapped her in a hug, grinning when she glanced up at him with bright eyes.

"You're completely right Bill! I can just make my own dress! Oh gosh, I need to fetch the right materials and begin right away if I want to finish it on time. Thank you, Billy!" Mabel launched herself back into Bill's arms, rubbing her face against his chest.

Bill laughed, pulling away slightly when she bounded out of his hold to gather up whatever she needed for her trip to the fabric store. Shouting her departure, Bill reclined in his recliner, somewhat pleased with the silence that surrounded him. It had been weeks since Mabel had had time to relax, he had offered to help with the responsibility of planning, but she had shrugged off his help with a grin saying that she had been planning long enough to know what she needed. Bill reluctantly let her to her own devices, not wanting her to get upset at him for nagging. When he noticed that she was being bogged down with the challenges of planning, he offered her help only to be turned down yet again.

Seeing her so happy made him happy. It had been a while since he had seen her smile like that. She seemed so distracted with the wedding plans that she was neglecting her own needs. He knew that once the wedding was over though that she would go back to being his peppy little Star, he just had to give her time. If he had to plan something as big as this all by himself, self employed or not, he'd be stressed out just as much as she was. It didn't take long for Mabel to come rushing back through the door, bags of fabric in her hands. Bill made a move to peak inside but was swatted away by a frowning brunette.

"You know the rules Bill, you can't see the dress until the wedding day, it's bad luck!" Mabel chastised him, wagging a finger in his face.

"Star, that's just fabric." Bill grumbled, rubbing at the side of his face.

Mabel just scoffed, turning on her heel and strutting into her room to measure out the material she would need, she knows all her measurements anyway. Bill found himself locked out of his own bedroom for four days, forced to sleep on the couch as Mabel slaved away over her wedding dress. He heard the sewing machine running into the wee hours of the night. Whenever he saw her come out of her room, she had dark bags under her eyes and her movements were sluggish, she wasn't sleeping.

"Mabel, you have to sleep sometime, you have enough time to finish that dress before the wedding, you still have three days." Bill called to her through the door, not hearing a response.

Mustering up the courage, he peaked into the room, finding Mabel slumped against the side of the bed with her eyes closed. Bill wanted to laugh, her body was slumped forward ever so slightly, clutching the finished product of her dress to her chest. Bill wasn't able to get that good of a look at her accomplishment, so he instead lifted her up and placed her in bed, watching as her body relaxed into the fluffy mattress.

Respecting her wishes for the dress not to be seen by him, he closed his eye and snapped his fingers. He worked his magic, hanging her dress up in the closet before he opened his eye again. Pushing the sewing machine away from the bed, he flopped down next to the slumbering girl, muttering words into his pillow before he turned over and pulled Mabel up against him.

The last few days up until the wedding were just fixing minor details, finalizing the last few pieces of the wedding, welcoming family from out of town and enjoying a rather fun bachelorette party thrown by Pacifica herself, the girls had gotten fucked up, despite Mabel still being one year underage. Both Bill and Mabel were well enough hung over the next day, one day before the wedding to spend it in bed, groaning at every sound that seemed to burst their eardrums and the sun that pierced their eyes.

The day of their wedding, Bill couldn't have been happier. He was pleasantly surprised by how well her dress had turned out. The white silk clung to her body, decorated in sparkling white glitter and soft lace. It flared out around her knees, giving her the mobility despite how much it clung to her. The slight train she had trailing behind her was tinted in the slightest bit with yellow, glittering in the sun as it too was covered in glitter. Despite being a freshly 20 year old, the girl had a strange fixation on glitter still.

Bill looked out at the corner of his eye, seeing Dipper standing behind him, acting as his best man seeing as how he didn't have anyone else. The man seemed fixated on his sister, tears gathering in his eyes as he gazed at her. Pacifica was waiting on the other side of the small altar, acting as Mabel's maid of honor with Candy and Grenda as bridesmaids. Mabel was walking beside her grunkles, seeing as how her parents could no longer attend the wedding, somehow her grunkles had outlived them. Stan and Ford glared at Bill one final time before the stepped down, allowing Mabel to take center stage, grasping at Bill's hands as the preacher read from his book.

Bill didn't bother to listen to the boring part about him greeting everyone, all he cared to do was stare at the gorgeous beauty standing before him. Her bright brown eyes reflected the same emotions he felt at that moment, love shining most brightly.

"Do you Bill Cipher, take Mabel Pines to be your lawfully wedded wife?" The preacher glanced at him, raising a brow as Bill looked up at him.

"You bet your life I do." Bill spoke honestly, smiling down at the small grin on her face.

"And do you, Mabel Pines take Bi-" The preacher was cut off as Mabel finished for him.

"Yadda yadda yadda, yes I do!" She squealed. "You may kiss the husband!"

She lurched forward, locking her lips against Bill's. Bill closed his eye, humming in content.

Pulling away from the girl, he whispered into her ear, watching as her eyes lit up in surprise before settling back down.

"It's a deal." She held her hand out, waiting patiently for Bill to shake her hand.

Instead of sealing the deal like he normally did, he just grasped her hand with his, shaking it softly before pulling her back to him to kiss her once more. Mabel couldn't be happier with the outcome, relaxing into his hold he had around her waist.

Pulling away at the sound of cheering, they turned to face the small group of friends that gathered there, clapping for the two as they took a bow. They both laughed before Bill offered them a wave and they were gone.

"Now how about we get this night started?" Bill waggled his eyebrows down at the girl, watching as a blush formed on her cheeks and her giggles and moans were heard throughout the night.

 _ *****FIN*****_

 _ **I wanted to finish this story off with a sadder ending, but I liked the way this turned out. I'm sorry if any of you felt as if this was not the way this story was going, but I didn't want to ruin their lives with something super tragic happening and giving them a wedding just felt right to me. Thank you for all of you who read this story and commented and liked it, I'll be sure to write another one seeing as it's already in the making. Be sure to check that out when I post the first few chapters of that one, it's going to be called Runaway and it's another Mabill. And with that, I bid you adieu.**_


	12. Chapter 12

**I know I said that this story was over, but I had this idea for another ending in my head the entire time and I couldn't for the life of me avoid writing this. It continues where it left off and I'm sorry if I cause any of you to cry but I really wanted to add this in. This is the final chapter of this story and I'm really pleased with how it turned out, despite being so short. Thank you for reading this and going on this ride with me.**

The wedding was beautiful as he had expected from his Star. She was everything he wasn't and he knew it. Years after the wedding past by so fast for Bill. He was forced to watch his Star grow without him. They found out they couldn't actually have kids with one another and that had been sad news for the both of them, but yet somewhat of a relief for Bill, he still wasn't sure what being pregnant with a demon would do to her.

Before his own eye he saw his Star grow from a young adult to a middle aged woman in what felt like for him meer minutes. Like with the blink of his eye and she was fifty. She walked around and talked as if she were still twenty four, but she couldn't do as much as she used to and Bill had noticed. He noticed how hard it was for her to walk up the stairs of their house. She played it off like it was nothing but when she came down in the morning she was always out of breath and tired, so tired.

Bill had tried reading up on anything that would prolong someone's life span or even halt it altogether, but even with his vast knowledge he couldn't find the spell for immortality. Mabel didn't seem fazed with it, but she did notice the haunted look in Bill's eye whenever she would grow frail and sickly. She knew it would never kill her, it was just a cold but Bill was always so nervous around her when she fell ill that it hurt her to see him like that. She always told him that if she were to die from something like the flu or a cold that he would have to eradicate the illness of the face of the Earth. He seemed to take it more seriously than she had expected.

Mabel didn't die from the flu like she joked about so often. Stage four brain cancer. It went unnoticed by so many doctors, she didn't display the symptoms, she didn't have frequent headaches; she didn't have difficulties with motor functions, besides the fact she got tired more frequently, but all elderly couldn't climb a mountain like they used to; she didn't have vision changes, her eyes were as powerful as a hawks; no speech problems, no nausea, no cognitive problems, she never displayed any of them. She seemed as right as rain until she locked up one day and fell down the stairs.

Bill had never been more afraid in his life than to see his Star laying stiff at the end of the stairs, her body covered in bruises. He had never moved so fast in his life either. He usually avoided the use of his powers in town for it would frighten the people, but his sudden appearance in the ER was definitely something he could overlook. Mabel was taken to get a PET scan almost immediately and after they had come back, they confirmed with him that she did in fact develop cancer. At such a late stage they couldn't do anything except make her more comfortable.

The last few weeks Bill spent at her bedside, holding her hand. They had his Star hooked up to so many wires and instruments to keep her stable until her time came. He frequented her dreamscape, only to find it empty. Never in his life had he seen someone's dreamscape filled with such blackness that he thought that she was already dead, and perhaps she was. She never woke up, not once to say goodbye to him, but when he went into her dreamscape for the last time, he found her, sitting amongst the blackness on her lonesome. She hadn't recognized him and he didn't expect her to, she was almost brain dead and the doctors had told him that if she did wake up she wouldn't recognize anyone.

He reintroduced himself and told her all about their life, watching as she smiled at him and held a conversation with him for about an hour before she slowly faded away. In the background he could hear her heart monitor flatline and doctors come rushing in to try their best to save her, but Bill had seen with his own eye that there was no coming back from this. Telling Dipper what happened was almost impossible for the demon. The boy was devastated and mad at the same time. He yelled at Bill for not telling him sooner and missing saying goodbye, but Bill made no move to defend himself, he stood there in the entrance of Dipper and Pacifica's shared house, eye cast downwards.

Bill made himself scarce for years, hiding out in his dreamscape, the only place where he could relive each moment with his Star. She seemed so vibrant in there that it was almost like she was with him, but he knew that deep down she was gone forever and that his cheap parlor tricks wouldn't keep her with him. The years that followed his seclusion was rocky to say the least. He liberated at least twelve dimensions, each one different from the last. His name was remembered across the multiverse as the Liberator of Worlds, but Bill wasn't in it for the title or the fear that he brought with him, he was hurting and he had broken his promise with his Star.

He guessed that her nickname truly lived up to the real thing. She was just like a shooting star, so beautiful and full of wonder, but short lived. He's not sure how long it had been since he had visited their dimension, but he came back. Dipper and Pacifica were long dead, their great great great great grandchildren having children of their own. He supposed that if he and Mabel had children they would've been living their lives right about now, enjoying every moment. He visited their condemned house, everything inside untouched by time. It was as if no one had lived their since her passing. The dust covering everything was the only reminder that things would never go back to how they were. He had made his way back up to their room, the bed made and all their things in their dresser. Her makeup was still sitting on the bathroom counter, her perfume still lingered in the air. Her sweaters still hung up in the closets, her shoes still scattered across the floor, she never bothered to pick them up.

In a fit of rage, Bill burned the house to the ground, the scent of fire in the air bringing life back to him. When the fire department had put the flames out and there was nothing left but smoldering embers, Bill walked amongst the debris, stopping as he found a single thing that had miraculously survived the destruction. Bending at the waist, Bill scooped up the pink sweater that held so much meaning. The faded symbol on the front brought back unwanted memories to the forefront of his mind. Of times long come to pass.

" _Come on Bill, this way!" Her chipper voice rung through his ears and led him into the woods further._

 _He came to stop at a small clearing, a rather small girl dancing alone to no music playing. Her long brown hair spun around her as she swayed to the music in her head. The bright colors of her outfit making her stand out amongst the green of her surroundings. His cackle filled the air as he rushed to pull her into a slow waltz. They spend the day there dancing to no music and laughing with one another like they had been lifelong friends._

" _I know you can do better than that, really try Bill!" She sung as she sunk another ball._

 _He picked up one of the brown balls that lay in a row, aiming before tossing the thing and watching as it fell into the pocket with a small thud._

" _See I knew you could do it!"_

" _Catch me if you can!" She laughed, her skirt billowing out behind her as she ran through the store, the cart squeaking as she pushed it._

" _Ma'am please don't run through the isles, you may hurt someone!" Bill laughed at the poor man trying to get her to stop chased after as she ducked into another isle._

" _Oh Bill, you mean so much to me. It hurts to see you in pain."_ A voice brought him back to the present.

He spun around, finding no one behind him. He could've sworn… no it wasn't possible she's been dead for centuries.

" _I'm right here Bill, you just have to believe me."_ The voice spoke again, the soft lull familiar and warm.

Bill closed his eyes, finding himself back in his mindscape. The person who stood before him had tears blurring his vision. The female held her arms out, a small smile plastered on her face as she waited for him to come closer. Bill wasted no time in enveloping her into a hug, his arms once again filled with the love of his neverending life.

"I've missed you so much, Star." Bill muttered into her neck, breathing in the familiar scent of her perfume.

" _And I you."_ She looked up to meet his eye, a small frown playing on her face. " _I thought I told you to live for me, not destroy dimensions for me."_

"It's been too hard without you Star, no one's there to tell me right from wrong anymore." Bill cast his gaze downward, avoiding her pointed stare.

" _You never needed someone to do that before, you made your choices on your own, I just influenced them."_ Mabel tisked. " _I don't have much time here, I can only stay for a little while longer, please listen to me when I say there isn't a time where I don't miss you. I know it's hard right now and you're hurting, but you can't make others hurt with you."_

Bill didn't respond, his head still hung to avoid her gaze. There was nothing he could do besides obey when her finger came under his chin and forced him to look up at her.

" _Keep living, don't look back."_ Was Mabel's last words before she disappeared for the second time.

Bill pulled himself out of his dreamscape, the sweater still clutched to his chest.

"Look back…"

With a predatory gleam in his eye, he apologized to his love one final time for ignoring her request and with the snap of his fingers, he found himself back in the mindscape. The sight of a young girl with long brown hair and curious chocolate colored eyes was in front of him. She was on the ground, her hand held by her face as she gazed up at him in what he thought was a bit of fear and a whole lot of confusion.

"Sheesh Shooting Star, this place could use some decorating." The words stung to say, but the look on her face was the same it had been before.

"Bill? What are you doing here?" Everything was like how it was.

Mabel moved to get up, eyeing Bill as he moved to circle her. Bill couldn't stop the small sound of pain that slipped past without his knowing.

"Bill?" Mabel asked again, her eyes drawn together in confusion and a little bit of sorrow.

"Don't worry about it Star, I have something to show you." The glow of his form brightened and Mabel found herself in a clearing, the dark night sky filled with stars and fireflies fluttering about around them.

Mabel looked up into the sky, watching as a shooting star sailed clear across the darkness.

"Pretty isn't it?" Mabel looked over to Bill, his eye not watching the sky, but her.

"Yeah, yeah it is." Was all Mabel said before she looked back to the sky.

 ***FIN***


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